Grant: Travel Awards - Institute Community Support

Through a community-led approach, the goal of the Fireweed Project is to build on existing community knowledge and strengths, advance knowledge around, and remove barriers to abortion services for Indigenous Women, Two-Spirit, and LGBTQIA+ People in Canada. The Fireweed Project is based out of the University of Victoria and co-led with four community organizations across Canada, including: Abortion Support Services Atlantic, ekw'í7tl Indigenous doula collective, Northern Reproductive Justice Network, and Northern Manitoba Abortion Support. Our project aims to investigate experiences of abortion stigma, access, and post-abortion support among Indigenous Women, Two-Spirit, and LGBTQIA+ people, and Indigenous and allied front-line services providers. We are doing this through two methods: 1) one-on-one conversations, and 2) an online cross-sectional survey. We have recently completed 40 one-on-one conversations with Indigenous people who have either accessed, or tried to access, an abortion in Canada. We are currently organizing the qualitative data analysis process that will follow the six-stage DEPICT model as defined by Flicker and Nixon, and will incorporate an IGBA+ analytical approach that considers colonialism, racism, gender, sexuality, and ability/ neurodiversity and self-determination. We continue to collect responses for our online cross-sectional survey from Indigenous and allied front-line service providers across Canada. Acknowledging the barriers in accessing sexual and reproductive health services that disproportionately impact Indigenous Women, Two-Spirit, and LGBTQIA+ people in Canada, coupled with the lack of knowledge surrounding Indigenous peoples' experiences with abortion, the Fireweed Project aims to close abortion access gap through engaging with Indigenous Women, Two-Spirit, and LGBTQIA+ people, as well as Indigenous and allied front-line services providers, to improve access to abortion services and supports in Canada.