Demand BC and Canada create a dedicated emergency broadcast system for Autistic and intellectually disabled individuals now.

To Our Elected Leaders:
The Honourable David Eby, Premier of British Columbia
The Honourable Jodie Wickens, Minister of Children and Family Development & MLA for Coquitlam-Burke Mountain
The Minister of Public Safety and Solicitor General of British Columbia
The Right Honourable Mark Carney, Prime Minister of Canada
The Honourable Eleanor Olszewski, Minister of Emergency Management and Community Resilience
All Members of the Legislative Assembly (MLAs) in BC and Members of Parliament (MPs) across Canada

Every single day, parents of neurodivergent children live with a constant, silent fear: in a split second, a lock turns, a hand slips away, or a child wanders toward immediate danger. When elopement happens, time is not just a factor,it is the difference between life and death.

Yet, under Canada’s current emergency framework, Amber Alerts are strictly reserved for confirmed abductions. This leaves a massive, life-threatening gap for non-verbal autistic individuals, individuals with intellectual disabilities, and seniors with dementia who wander into immediate harm without evidence of foul play.

We are launching this petition in strong solidarity with the foundational Indigo Alert movement ignited in Alberta by Jennifer Ball.(https://indigoalertcanada.com

The tragic flaws in our current alert system were laid bare during the search for 11-year-old Parker Wells, a non-verbal autistic boy who went missing in Calgary. Because there was no proof of kidnapping, an emergency broadcast could not be issued under Amber Alert rules. Despite thousands of search hours logged by community members and law enforcement, Parker was tragically found deceased days later.

We refuse to sit quietly while another child dies because our emergency response tools fail to address how neurodivergent children actually go missing.

THE CRITICAL DATA DEMANDING LEGISLATIVE ACTION
49% of autistic children attempt to wander or elope after age 4.
70%+ of elopements happen directly from home or school with zero evidence of foul play.
33%+ of autistic individuals who wander are non-verbal and cannot communicate their name, address, or ask for help.
65% of cases involve high risk from traffic, and 24% involve water hazards.
Autistic children are 160 times more likely to die from drowning than the general pediatric population.

HOW THE INDIGO ALERT WORKS
The Indigo Alert does not alter or dilute the strict criteria for Amber Alerts. Instead, it gives law enforcement a distinct, secondary tool tailored specifically for non-abduction emergencies:

Targeted Trigger: Issued when a vulnerable, non-verbal, or medically complex person who cannot self-rescue wanders into high-risk conditions.

Preventing Alert Fatigue: Relies on clear, verified risk factors evaluated by law enforcement to ensure the public takes every notification seriously.

National Standard: British Columbia must lead by establishing this protocol locally while building momentum for a uniform standard across all 13 provinces and territories.

OUR DIRECT CALL TO ACTION
We urge Premier David Eby, Minister Jodie Wickens, Prime Minister Mark Carney, and leaders across Canada to:

Enact BC Provincial Legislation: Update provincial public safety protocols during the upcoming legislative session to formally establish the "Indigo Alert."

Empower Law Enforcement: Grant police agencies clear legal authorization to deploy regional public emergency broadcasts immediately when a vulnerable person is missing in dangerous conditions.

Establish a Unified National Framework: Coordinate federally to standardize Indigo Alert criteria across all provinces and territories.

SIGN & SHARE

As parents and caregivers, we watch over our children every second of every day. We need our government and law enforcement to have the legal tools to back us up when crisis strikes.

Sign this petition today to demand that British Columbia and Canada enact the Indigo Alert now.