Vigil held for Indigenous woman Tatyanna Harrison
Posted September 3, 2022 10:40 am.
Last Updated September 4, 2022 11:54 am.
A vigil for missing Indigenous woman Tatyanna Harrison found dead in Richmond was held Saturday afternoon.
Tatyanna ‘s remains were found May 2, but not positively identified until Aug. 6.
Unaccounted for more than eight weeks, Tatyanna was originally reported missing by her mother Natasha Harrison on May 3.
Police say Harrison last texted her mother on March 24 from somewhere on the Downtown Eastside.
Indigenous woman Tatyanna Harrison was reported missing by her mother on May 3. She was last seen on Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside. (Courtesy Surrey RCMP)
The vigil began Saturday at 1 p.m. at Shelter Island Marina and Boatyard in Richmond.
Speaking at the vigil, Natasha Harrison says Tatyanna was a passionate reader, an inquisitive soul, and was often lost in her books.
She says Tatyanna was loved by everyone who met her and her loss will be felt by many.
“A precious life was taken too soon. A life that was taken from her she deserved so much more than this world was willing to offer her,” said Natasha.
“She deserved to be loved wholeheartedly and the way she was treated during her last month is nothing short of horrific.”
Natasha says the investigation into Tatyanna’s death continues to frustrate and hurt family, friends, and the community.
“One man can walk in and decide she’s not worthy of a proper investigation,” she said. “How can you close her case?”
“How did she get here? Do you have any camera footage of her coming here by herself? If you did your job, the families wouldn’t be left with all these questions.”
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Working closely with Natasha since her daughter went missing, Lorelei Williams, the founder of Butterflies in Spirit and Skatin and Sts’ailes Nation member, says holding the vigil as soon as possible after Harrison was found is important.
“It’s to honour and remember Tatyanna and raise awareness of the issue,” Williams told CityNews last month.
It is also coming up on the anniversary of when Chelsea Poorman, a Kawacatoose Nation member, went missing.
The families for Poorman and Noelle O’Soup – a missing 14-year-old Indigenous girl from Key and Saulteau Nations who was found dead May 1 – are expected to be at the vigil.
Williams says the vigil is a chance for the three families to come together to call for justice for their daughters.
“There’s a reason why Noelle and Chelsea are included. I feel like there’s so much that has happened in all of the cases, some similarities, but also the negligence, the discrimination, and the racism from the Vancouver Police Department in all of those cases,” Williams said.
“The families are showing their support for Tatyanna at this time, but Tatyanna’s family wants to bring light to all of these issues that have happened in all of these cases.”
Poorman’s body was found in a Shaughnessy home earlier this year after going missing.
O’Soup’s body was found on the downtown eastside in May.
With files from Charile Carey
