The Busy Signal > Member Voices

dragging the red

By David Hopkinson | Summer/Fall 2026

As the Drag the Red boat passes beneath the bald eagles perched high in the trees along the Red River, we offer tobacco to them. The eagle is a messenger that can fly closer to the Creator than anything else. Offering tobacco, the first medicine, is a way to carry prayers to the Creator and honour the eagle's spirit.

In mid-August, Roberta Williams, Joseph Shodunke, Melina Tallentire and I had the opportunity to travel to Winnipeg to participate in Drag the Red. Arranged through our Local 1-S executive and Gina Smoke, Director of Indigenous Relations for Unifor National, this was an incredible opportunity. We were able to take part in both Drag the Red and the Main Street Community Walk, learn from the people leading these initiatives and witness some of the cultural ceremonies of Winnipeg's Indigenous community.

Drag the Red began in 2014 following the death of Tina Fontaine, a young girl from a reserve northeast of Winnipeg who was found wrapped in a duvet cover in the Red River. It was co-founded by Bernadette Smith and Kyle Kematch, both of whom had sisters who went missing. The initiative searches the Red River and its banks for evidence relating to Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls and Two-Spirit people.

From the time the river ice breaks up until it freezes again, volunteers take the Drag the Red boat out five days a week. They visually scan the shoreline for anyone who may be deceased or in distress while slowly dragging hooks along the muddy river bottom.

There are several jobs to be done in the boat. Someone drives, another manages the rope spool, another handles the rope leading to the hooks, and the remaining volunteers watch the riverbanks for anything unusual. When the hooks catch something, the driver is alerted and the work of bringing it to the boat begins.

We pulled up pieces of cloth, an empty bag, plastic sheeting and a jacket. Nothing definitive, but Drag the Red keeps records of what is found in case something connects to a missing person later. Most of what we brought up was fishing line, wire, a bicycle frame and tree branches. The river didn't give up any of its secrets to us.

It is painstaking work, and sometimes heartbreaking. Their task has been compared to looking for a needle in a haystack. Yet the volunteers continue with hope, love, strength and courage.

The program is now led by Jill Wilson, who embodies all of those qualities. We were fortunate to spend the week with Jill, learning about her own story and the tragic stories of far too many missing and murdered women in the Winnipeg area.

Jill has experienced more hardship and tragedy than anyone I've ever met. Her childhood was filled with abuse and exploitation, with system after system failing her. But she survived. Today, she leads Drag the Red, works as a therapist with impoverished youth to help them heal and reconnect with their culture, and volunteers with the Main Street Community Walk. If you have an opportunity to spend time with Jill, open your heart and open your ears. Every minute spent with her is worth it.

The Main Street Community Walk was the other initiative we had the opportunity to join. The area of Main Street where the walks take place is one of the poorest parts of Winnipeg. Every Tuesday and Thursday, volunteers gather to prepare food and clothing, fill wagons and walk the streets with the goal of making life a little better for people who are struggling.

We joined the volunteers in handing out food, water, clothing, shoes and feminine hygiene products. It is devastating to see how some people are barely surviving. But there is also hope in knowing that even a small act can make someone's day a little better.

One moment in particular stayed with me. Jill helped a young woman put on a long-sleeved sweater and then gave her a warm hug. A few minutes later, I saw the woman again and asked how the sweater was. She beamed and said, "It's nice and warm."

Our final night in Winnipeg, Jill invited the four of us, along with Gina and my wife Tracy, who had joined me in Winnipeg, to her home for a pipe ceremony and banquet. Jeremiah Raven shared songs with us, and we joined in with drums and rattles. He then led the pipe ceremony, followed by a sharing circle before we went inside to feast.

I am very grateful for our week with Drag the Red. Our time there was both humbling and inspiring. It was a lesson in the many ways we can help others and an opportunity to put into practice what we, as Unifor members, can do in the spirit of Truth and Reconciliation.

A Week in Winnipeg —Moments from Drag the Red