Press Release - MMIWG Exhibition Virtual Opening
9/24/2020 8:07:00 AM - Ziibiwing Cultural Center

Mt. Pleasant, Michigan – The Saginaw Chippewa Indian Tribe of Michigan and its Ziibiwing Center of Anishinabe Culture & Lifeways will hold a virtual grand opening of, Boontak! (Stop it!): Stolen Daughters of Turtle Island, a community-curated exhibition that addresses Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls (MMIWG), on Friday, September 25 at 12pm/Noon EST. The virtual grand opening will be presented on the following website: www.sagchip.org.

The exhibition seeks to raise awareness about the atrocities of the MMIWG crisis impacting Tribal communities across Turtle Island. The exhibit features 94 portraits of North American Indian women and girls, including

U. S. Representative Deb Haaland (D-New Mexico), who volunteered to represent those who are missing and/or deceased. Saginaw Chippewa photographer Marcella Hadden and her granddaughter Christina Benz took the photographs over the course of three months in 2019. The exhibition will also feature original artworks from:

1.    Luverne Adamson, “Highway of Tears” Acrylic Painting      

2.    Shirley Brauker, “Gone” Ledger Drawing                  

3.    Dr. Suzanne Cross, MMIWG Beaded Medallion, Shawl & Skirt

4.    Jenny Davis, “Birth of Deer Woman” Graphic Art    

5.    Joe Fisher, “She Dreamt” MMIWG Sculpture          

6.    Glenna Jenkins, MMIWG Beaded Medallion

7.    Nickole Keith, “Nnoshé, My Maternal Aunt” Painting

8.    Joey Kennedy, “No More MMIW” Earrings

9.    Nayana LaFond, “Stacey in RED” & “Shiloh in RED” (2) Acrylic Paintings

10.  Diane Leksche, “Kaleidoscope Facets: Standing Tall Breeze” Stained Glass Art Mandala

11.  Aryl Ruffino, (2) Photographic Canvasses

12.  Roger High, Sarah Hughes & Ellie Van Horn, MMIWG Quilt

13.  Angela Peters & Ellie Mitchell , MMIWG Jingle Dress

14. Allyssa Shawboose, Niintam Na? (Am I next?) Animation

15. Suzi Day, Red Dress Beaded Earrings

MMIWG is affecting every Indigenous community. Therefore, in 2019 the Saginaw Chippewa Indian Tribe of Michigan’s community formed the MMIWG Committee to acknowledge and address this epidemic of violence.  The exhibit, both somber and hopeful, seeks to express the pain of the epidemic, draw attention to MMIWG cold cases, reduce future disappearances and deaths, and offer a point of healing. This exhibit illuminates the devastating impact of these losses within Indigenous communities. The Saginaw Chippewa’s MMIWG Committee believes this crisis is a larger human rights issue which we must all work to confront.

“The MMIWG exhibit is one way of calling attention to the injustices of Indigenous women & girls across Turtle Island, states Marcella Hadden, co-curator and photographer.  “Until change in reporting and the seriousness is given to this matter, all Native women continue to be at risk.”

The MMIWG movement was first catalyzed by Indigenous women protesting man camps. Man camps are temporary housing units built by extractive industries, such as fossil fuels, typically for non-Indigenous, non-local workers in rural areas bordering on or near Indian reservations. Man camps often span the colonial borders of the United States and Canada. Nearby Indigenous communities or border towns experience increased incidences of violence, robberies, sexual assault, and human trafficking.

“The enthusiasm and love that has been shown toward the Boontak! (Stop it!): Stolen Daughters of Turtle Island exhibit has been inspiring. Recently, I fielded a call from the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe from the Minnesota Chippewa Tribe. They support our efforts and look forward to the exhibit going virtual,” states co-curator William Johnson.

The Boontak! (Stop it!): Stolen Daughters of Turtle Island exhibition will be on display at the Ziibiwing Center from September 25, 2020 to May 5, 2021. During the course of the exhibition, complementary virtual MMIWG events will be offered by Central Michigan University, Mid Michigan College, and the Saginaw Chippewa Indian Tribe of Michigan. For more information about the exhibition and events, contact the Ziibiwing Center at (989) 775-4750, find us on Facebook, or visit www.sagchip.org/ziibiwing.

The Ziibiwing Center of Anishinabe Culture & Lifeways in Mount Pleasant, Mich. is the Midwest’s Premier American Indian Museum. Established in 2004, the Ziibiwing Center is a distinctive treasure created to provide an enriched, diversified and culturally relevant educational experience through its award-winning Diba Jimooyung (Telling Our Story) permanent exhibit, changing exhibits, research center, Ojibwe language immersion room, gift shop, and meeting rooms. The Ziibiwing Center is a non-profit cultural center and museum belonging to the Saginaw Chippewa Indian Tribe of Michigan who also owns the Soaring Eagle Casino & Resort, Soaring Eagle Waterpark and Hotel, and Saganing Eagles Landing Casino & Hotel located in Standish, Mich.

Please note: The Ziibiwing Center of Anishinabe Culture & Lifeways is temporarily closed to the public until further notice due to the pandemic.