The Tragedy of Missing and Murdered Women in Vancouver's Downtown Eastside

This is the 4th in the series, "Vancouver's Downtown Eastside: Past and Present”. In this episode, Libby Davies, former Vancouver City councillor and former NDP MP for the riding in which the Downtown Eastside is located, discusses the tragedy of missing and murdered women in the community. This issue has been going on for decades and has national implications.

She recalls addressing the situation with the then federal minister of justice, shocked that not only was the federal government not doing anything about it, he hadn't even heard of the issue.

Having started out as a community worker, then moving to municipal politics and subsequently to federal politics, her 50 years of experience in the neighbourhood provide her with an insight into its history and where it needs to go now. Davies, among others, helped start the Downtown Eastside Residents Association (DERA), a grassroots organization that challenged the status quo.

In the present day, the Downtown Eastside faces multiple issues all of which have been exacerbated by COVID 19. Amongst these are housing, health; including overdose, mental health and the impact of the pandemic, poverty and homelessness, indigenous reconciliation and policing.

Future episodes will include representatives from various organizations: civic, provincial and grassroots, addressing the task at hand.

The work to be done is not to be underestimated yet the resilience and determination of community members, not commonly recognized, continues to grow. As well as these individuals, we will also be hearing from those who live in the community and call it home.