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By Marni Rose McFall
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The acronym MMIWG2SLGBTQQIA+, recently used by a Canadian politician, has sparked a frenzy online.
Canadian politician Leah Gazan, member of the New Democratic Party who serves as the Member of Parliament for Winnipeg Center, recently spoke about Canada’s budget cuts and condemned the budget for cutting $7 billion from Indigenous Services Canada and Crown-Indigenous relations.
Gazan said that no money had been provided for the “ongoing genocide of MMIWG2SLGBTQQIA+.” The length of this acronym has prompted scrutiny and a massive response online.
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Why It Matters
MMIWG2SLGBTQQIA+ is an acronym used primarily in Canada. Its purpose is to name and acknowledge a broad group of people affected by systemic violence—especially within Indigenous communities.
The acronym stands for: Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls, and Two‑Spirit (a term that is used by some First Nations to describe people who embody both masculine and feminine spirits), Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, Questioning, Intersex, and Asexual people.
Missing and murdered indigenous women and girls are a significant and well-documented issue in Canada. The full acronym has been used for years in government, advocacy, and community contexts to emphasize intersectionality. It is intentionally lengthy in order to name everyone who has historically been left out of national conversations about violence, justice, and safety.
What To Know
Gazan’s remarks were focused on concerns about violence against indigenous people. She described the $7 billion funding cuts as “abhorrent” and “callous.”
The government has said the reductions are part of a wider effort to rein in federal spending and manage long‑term deficits, while continuing to fund programs it says are legally or constitutionally required, including clean water and core services for Indigenous communities.
Gazan is a member of the New Democratic Party, a left-wing party described as democratic socialist. The clip has quickly gone viral online.
Though Gazan was speaking about a very serious topic, the usage of the acronym has prompted criticism and derision on the Internet, particularly from conservative voices, with the likes of Elon Musk weighing in.
Musk wrote in a post on X, “Seriously would have been an implausible comedy routine even from circa 2010.” In a follow-up post, he wrote: “Canada is cooked.”
The Governor of Arkansas, Sarah Huckabee Sanders, meanwhile, wrote, “I think they’re just adding letters to mess with us at this point.”
Political commentator Link Lauren wrote, “I am begging y’all to stop adding letters. This is absolutely ridiculous.”
The YouTuber Daniel Negreanu wrote in a post, “Are you really not aware of how silly this sounds?”
What People Are Saying
Gad Saad, author and professor, in a post on X: “Is this real?”
Colin Wright, Editor in Chief of Real Last Stand, in a post on X: “Every time someone says 'Woke is dead!', Canada has vowed to add one character to the oppression alphabet.”
One social media user wrote in a post viewed 1.4 million times: “The acronym just seems to be getting longer and longer every year in Canada Welcome to Canada.”
One social media user wrote in a post viewed over 40,000 times: “I hate to be that guy cuz I love Leah but this is why the NDP have 6 seats.”
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What's Next
As Parliament considers Budget 2025, Indigenous organizations have said they plan to press the federal government over funding levels for programs linked to the National Action Plan on missing and murdered Indigenous women, girls, and 2SLGBTQQIA+ people, citing concerns about expiring and reduced budgets, according to CBC News. The government has said it will point to continued funding for core services, including clean drinking water and infrastructure, while maintaining that departments must meet spending‑reduction targets as part of broader deficit management, according to Budget 2025 documents and analysis from the Assembly of First Nations and the Yellowhead Institute.
Update 4/9/26 2:40 p.m. ET: This story was updated with additional information.
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