Cinema Politica Danforth Presents "Highway of Tears" on March 27

Highway of Tears chronicles the notorious, decades-long string of murders and disappearances of young Indigenous women along British Columbia's Highway 16.

The film explores how this systemic violence is linked to the effects of generational poverty, residential schools, and high unemployment rates on First Nations reserves.

Since the late 1960s, at least 18 young women — many of them from disadvantaged First Nations communities — have disappeared or been found murdered along the 724-kilometre stretch of Highway 16 in northern British Columbia. None of these cold cases were ever solved until 2012, when a special RCMP investigation was able to link DNA from one of the murder victims to deceased US criminal Bobby Jack Fowler; but this single answer has done little to heal the wounds of Aboriginal communities who have seen dozens of their young women vanish along the "Highway of Tears," victims not only of murderous predators but of the systemic racism of a federal government that keeps them trapped on impoverished reservations and, as critics charge, evinced little interest in apprehending their killers.

Narrated by Nathan Fillion, Highway of Tears not only movingly relates the personal stories of the victims and their families, but investigates how the legacy of generational poverty, high unemployment and endemic violence in their communities contributed to their tragic fates — and how contemporary First Nations leaders are striving to cure those ills.

March 27, 2015 7:30 pm Metropolitian Community Church of Toronto 115 Simpson Ave In Riverdale, one block north of Gerrard, one block west of Logan

Followed by a discussion with:

Niki Ashton, MP for Churchill, NDP Aboriginal Affairs Critic, formerly Women's Affairs Critic

Darlene King, Literacy Coordinator,The Native Women�'s Resource Centre of Toronto

Matt Smiley, Director of Highway of Tears

Hosted and Moderated by

Craig Scott, Member of Parliament for Toronto Danforth

Screening is FREE but donations will be gratefully accepted.

About the Film

A film by Kelly Nyks & Jared P. Scott Runtime: 52 min.

Through a relentless investigation to find the answer, Disruption takes an unflinching look at the devastating consequences of our inaction.

The exploration lays bare the terrifying science, the shattered political process, the unrelenting industry special interests and the civic stasis that have brought us to this social, moral and ecological crossroads.The film also takes us behind-the-scenes of the efforts to organize the largest climate rally in the history of the planet during the UN world climate summit.

This is the story of our unique moment in history. We are living through an age of tipping points and rapid social and planetary change. We’re the first generation to feel the impacts of climate disruption, and the last generation that can do something about it. The film enlarges the issue beyond climate impacts and makes a compelling call for bold action that is strong enough to tip the balance to build a clean energy future.

Official Site

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Thank you to our sponsors:  CUPE Ontario, The Native Women'�s Resource Centre of Toronto, Council Fire, SAGE-UT (Supporting Aboriginal Graduate Enhancement), York Aboriginal Education Council