Highway of Tears
A True Story of Racism, Indifference and the Pursuit of Justice for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls
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Narrated by:
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Emily Nixon
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Written by:
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Jessica McDiarmid
About this listen
A searing and revelatory account of the missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls of Highway 16, and an indictment of the society that failed them.
For decades, Indigenous women and girls have gone missing or been found murdered along an isolated stretch of highway in northwestern British Columbia. The highway is known as the Highway of Tears, and it has come to symbolize a national crisis.
Journalist Jessica McDiarmid meticulously investigates the devastating effect these tragedies have had on the families of the victims and their communities, and how systemic racism and indifference have created a climate where Indigenous women and girls are over-policed, yet under-protected. Through interviews with those closest to the victims - mothers and fathers, siblings and friends - McDiarmid provides an intimate, first-hand account of their loss and relentless fight for justice. Examining the historically fraught social and cultural tensions between settlers and Indigenous peoples in the region, McDiarmid links these cases to others across Canada - now estimated to number up to 4,000 - contextualizing them within a broader examination of the undervaluing of Indigenous lives in the country.
Highway of Tears is a powerful story about our ongoing failure to provide justice for missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls, and a testament to their families and communities' unwavering determination to find it.
PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.
©2019 Jessica McDiarmid (P)2019 Doubleday Canada
Editorial Review
British Columbia Highway 16, part of the Trans-Canada Highway, traverses greater Western Canada. Highway 16 also has a nickname with a dark undercarriage: The Highway of Tears. This stretch of roadway earned its tragic nickname due to the staggering number of disappearances and murders that happen to befall its travellers. What’s more, this Canadian highway has come to represent a national crisis—the callous indifference of Canadian authorities to the plight of missing or murdered Indigenous women and girls.
In Highway of Tears, Canadian journalist Jessica McDiarmid dives deeply into the pursuit of justice for missing and murdered indigenous women and girls. Through rigorous investigation and intense interviews with the families of women and girls who have gone missing or whose bodies were found, McDiarmid positions the victims at the front of the conversation. She exposes the systemic problems plaguing Indigenous people in northwestern British Columbia and throughout Canada. With this, McDiarmid can connect the crimes against Indigenous women and girls on The Highway of Tears to other murdered indigenous women across the country.
Powerfully narrated by Emily Nixon, Highway of Tears is a compelling true story of systemic racism, the lack of protection and indifference towards Indigenous people, and the courage and unwavering determination of community members who continue to speak out and seek justice for their loved ones.
Since I started the book, I started making sure my door is locked at night.
It opened my eyes to how bad life is and was for indigenous women and children. 14 and 15 year old girls who were kidnapped, raped, tortured and killed. Their families left to search on their own with zero support from the local law enforcement. Worried mothers told their child has probably run away to live on the DTES.
My heart breaks for the families left behind.
Ramona Wilson's death is still not solved, eventhough someone had called in saying they were there and know what happened. The police did not follow up on that lead. But if she was a different, more accepted race, her murder would have been solved.
#mmiwandgirls
#IndigeousLivesMatter
An eye opening read.
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The good and the bad
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Narrator was too fast
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Important for Canadians
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Important read
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My heart aches for the families and friends of these missing and murdered girls and women.
While the book was difficult to hear, it was a journey I wanted to walk.
Highway of Tears
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Amazing
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Truly eye opening book
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Let there be justice for these women and girls, sooner than later.
Excellent
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Mandatory reading for all Canadian's.
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