06/19/2026
🏛️ Nearly 40 of Deborah Anishinabie's friends, family and community members gathered inside the Indigenous People's Court within the Thunder Bay courthouse before a preliminary hearing began. They wore red t-shirts with a picture of Anishinabie on the front, covered in a red handprint — a symbol of the ongoing epidemic of missing and murdered Indigenous women, girls, Two-Spirit and gender-diverse people.
🕯️ Levi Lawson, 25, was charged with indignity to a human body on Dec. 17, 2024, and second-degree murder on Jan. 31, 2025, in connection with Anishinabie's disappearance and death. None of the allegations have been proven in court. The back of the shirts said, "a life that touched others goes on forever".
💔 "Through my lifetime and all the work that I do for advocating for ending violence, I have to say that this is the most horrific homicide of a First Nation woman that I've had to be a part of," said Anna Betty Achneepineskum, a deputy grand chief with Nishnawbe Aski Nation. Before her death, Anishinabie had recently graduated from a personal support worker program.
🔍 Indigenous women, girls, Two-Spirit and gender-diverse people are 12 times more likely to go missing or be murdered than non-Indigenous women in Canada. "We appreciate everyone who have joined with us in ceremony and supported us throughout this difficult process. May the Creator give us all the strength to get through the difficult days ahead," the family said.
Disclaimer: This content is based on CBC News reporting. Images are for illustrative purposes only