In 2019, the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls (MMIWG) delivered its final 1,200-page report, “Reclaiming Power and Place.”

Built on the truths of over 2,380 family members, survivors, and experts, the Inquiry’s central, unambiguous finding was that the violence against Indigenous women, girls, and 2SLGBTQQIA people is a “race-based genocide.”

In response, the Inquiry did not issue “recommendations.” It issued 231 **”Calls for Justice.”** Years later, a stark “accountability gap” has emerged, with Indigenous-led organizations reporting a “FAILURE” in government action, while the government itself reports steady progress. Here is a plain-language guide to what the Calls for Justice are, what they demand, and the reality of their implementation.

The Core Finding: A “Race-Based Genocide”

The Inquiry’s use of the word “genocide” was not rhetorical; it was a deliberate legal conclusion based on international law.

The report argues that genocide is not just mass killing. It also includes “deliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part.” The Inquiry found that “persistent and deliberate human and Indigenous rights violations and abuses” by the Canadian state—through systemic failures in policing, justice, child welfare, and health—created and maintained the conditions for this violence to occur with impunity.

“Calls for Justice” vs. TRC’s “Calls to Action” (A Critical Distinction)

This is the most important concept to understand. The MMIWG Inquiry made a deliberate and critical linguistic shift from the TRC’s “Calls to Action.”

• The TRC’s 94 “Calls to Action” were a “blueprint” for reconciliation—a policy-based *invitation* to repair a damaged relationship.
• The MMIWG’s 231 “Calls for Justice” are framed as “legal imperatives – they are not optional.”

The Inquiry states that these calls are not new “recommendations.” They are demands to come into *compliance* with existing international and domestic human rights laws, including the Charter, the Constitution, and the Honour of the Crown. This reframes the entire debate from one of political goodwill to one of systemic legal default by the state.

What Do the 231 Calls Demand? (The Themes)

The 231 Calls are directed at all levels of government, as well as specific institutions and all Canadians. They represent a “whole-of-society” approach to ending the genocide. The main themes include:

• Calls for All Governments: To develop and implement a fully-funded National Action Plan, provide long-term funding for culturally-safe healing and prevention programs, and recognize Indigenous languages as official languages.
• Calls for Justice: To “dramatically transform Indigenous policing”, recruit more Indigenous police officers, establish independent civilian oversight of police, and require mandatory anti-racism and cultural safety training for all justice officials.
• Calls for Health & Wellness: To provide adequate funding for “culturally safe and trauma-informed care” and ensure all medical professionals are trained in the history of colonialism and anti-bias.
• Calls for Child Welfare: To stop the apprehension of Indigenous children and move funding to Indigenous-led, community-based models of prevention and care.
• Calls for Media: To “decolonize by learning the true history of Canada” and end the perpetuation of racist and sexualized stereotypes, while increasing Indigenous representation in newsrooms.
• Calls for All Canadians: In a rare move, the Inquiry assigns personal responsibility, calling on all Canadians to “confront and speak out against racism, sexism, ignorance, homophobia, and transphobia” in their daily lives.

The Accountability Gap: “Progress” vs. “Failure”

Years after the report, a deep chasm exists between the government’s narrative of progress and the reality reported by Indigenous-led organizations.

The Government’s Position (Based on “Inputs”)

The government released its “Federal Pathway” as part of the 2021 National Action Plan. Its 2024-2025 Annual Progress Report highlights “inputs” like allocating funds for a Red Dress Alert pilot, releasing an Indigenous Justice Strategy, and funding new shelters.

The Indigenous-Led Analysis (Based on “Outcomes”)

Indigenous organizations, who track real-world *outcomes*, have a starkly different assessment:

• A Grade of “FAILURE”: The Native Women’s Association of Canada (NWAC) gave the government’s performance a grade of “FAILURE”, citing a “lack of concrete action” and “an absence of accountability mechanisms.”
• “No Real, On-the-Ground Changes”: The Assembly of First Nations (AFN) states that “we have yet to see real, on-the-ground changes” to end the violence.

Why the Gap?

The gap exists because the government measures *inputs* (dollars allocated, meetings held) while Indigenous-led groups measure *outcomes* (Are Indigenous women safer?). The AFN’s 2024 report found that many government “successes” are just “mainly existing programs and funding initiatives framed to appear” as new action.

The most damning evidence of this failure is that in the six years since the report, the AFN notes that the “urgent and growing crisis of human trafficking” is escalating, proving the root causes of violence and vulnerability have not been addressed.

What All Canadians Can Do (The Personal Imperative)

The 231 Calls for Justice make it clear that this is not just a government problem. The Inquiry assigns specific, personal responsibility to every non-Indigenous Canadian. The “Calls for All Canadians” (15.1 – 15.8) are a direct mandate to:

• Denounce and speak out against violence against Indigenous women, girls, and 2SLGBTQQIA people.
• “Decolonize by learning the true history of Canada” and the specific Indigenous history of your local area.
• Read the final report and listen to the truths shared.
• Actively work to break down barriers and support Indigenous-led work.
• “Confront and speak out against racism, sexism, ignorance, homophobia, and transphobia” in your home, workplace, and community.