Province opens round the clock safe space in Brandon

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The provincial government is putting up half a million dollars to fund a new safe space in Brandon to help Indigenous women, two-spirit and gender-diverse people at risk of harm escape from violence and abuse.

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On Thursday morning, Families Minister Nahanni Fontaine announced the province will provide $500,000 to support a new 24/7 safe space in the western Manitoba city that is home to approximately 50,000 residents, and is the second largest urban centre in Manitoba.

“This new safe space will mean more beds and more space for Indigenous women, two-spirit or gender-diverse people who are unsheltered and at risk of harm, who need help to stabilize their lives,” Fontaine said during a Thursday morning media conference in Brandon.

“Indigenous women, girls, two-spirit, and gender-diverse folks face some of the highest levels of gender-based violence, and on a daily basis in our province, are navigating a variety of different systems that make them unsafe, and today’s announcement is about making Indigenous women, girls, two-spirit, and gender-diverse folks safe here in Brandon.”

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The new space, which will be known as Franny’s Place, will include 10 bedrooms, a shared kitchen, bathrooms, laundry facilities and a living room and dining area.

It will also put a focus on allowing women to take part in the kinds of activities that they enjoy, and ones that could possibly help them to turn their lives around.

“Residents will be able to engage in positive activities based on their interests, including beading, cooking, baking, painting, growing plants, playing bingo and woodworking,” Fontaine said.

“It will provide the safety, security and peace needed to help them on their path of healing and recovery.”

The province said the safe space was also made possible because of partnerships with the Manitoba Métis Federation (MMF) and the Brandon Neighbourhood Renewal Corporation’s Action Research on Chronic Homelessness.

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“Through these safe houses, we aim to reduce the number of our sisters being murdered, going missing or dying from preventable deaths,” Brandon Neighbourhood Renewal Corporation’s Action Research on Chronic Homelessness lead researcher Megan McKenzie said Thursday.

This space will also offer a 24/7 drop-in service, providing outreach services, intake assessments and other support for people awaiting placement in a safe house or another safe program, the province added and will be staffed 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

It will also be supported by Keegawegeein (I’ll Help You), a volunteer committee of “wise Indigenous women from the community who provide support rooted in the Seven Sacred Teachings.”

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According to the province, safe spaces provide increased prevention and protection for people including those with illness or injury, physical or intellectual disabilities, cognitive impairment or brain injury, substance use or addiction issues, mental health concerns or acute safety concerns, such as domestic violence, human trafficking, court-mandated safety orders, recent assaults, death threat or other imminent risks of harm.

Funding for the new safe space in Brandon will come as part of Mino’Ayaawag Ikwewag, the Manitoba government’s new $20-million provincial strategy to support the safety, protection and empowerment of Indigenous women, girls, two-spirit and gender-diverse people, according to Fontaine.

— Dave Baxter is a Local Journalism Initiative reporter who works out of the Winnipeg Sun. The Local Journalism Initiative is funded by the Government of Canada.

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