Remembering ‘countless’ missing or murdered native people

Kate Holloway
·2 min read

LANSING, Mich. (WLNS) — The U.S. Department of Justice says Native American women face murder rates that are more than 10 times the national average.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention lists homicide as the third leading cause of death for Native American women aged 10-24.

Thousands of murders, disappearances of indigenous women remain unsolved

This Sunday, May 5, is Missing and Murdered Indigenous Persons Awareness Day. It “serves as an opportunity to raise awareness, honor the countless lives that have been lost, and address violence against Indigenous communities–particularly women and girls,” said officials from the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services.

The Michigan Domestic and Sexual Violence Prevention and Treatment Board is encouraging all Michiganders to go to gatherings and marches hosted by Michigan’s federally recognized tribes.

FILE - Jeannie Hovland, the deputy assistant secretary for Native American Affairs for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, poses with a Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women mask, Wednesday, Aug. 26, 2020, in Anchorage, Alaska. Law enforcement has prepared a first-of-its-kind report detailing missing Alaska Natives and American Indian people in Alaska, a newspaper reported. The Alaska Department of Public Safety last week released the Missing Indigenous Persons Report, which includes the names of 280 people, dates of their last contact and whether police believe the disappearance was suspicious in nature, the Anchorage Daily News reported. (AP Photo/Mark Thiessen, File)

“The needs surrounding missing and murdered women and Indigenous people are long-standing issues connected to this country’s history of assimilation policies,” said the Hon. Melissa Pope, chief judge of the Nottawaseppi Huron Band of the Potawatomi Tribal Court, chief justice of the Little River Band of Ottawa Indians Tribal Court and member of the Michigan Domestic and Sexual Violence Prevention and Treatment Board.

In this image from the video, Ernie Weyand, the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Person coordinator for the Justice Department in Montana, speaks at a virtual news conference Thursday, April 1, 2021, announcing a development in the initiative. The Justice Department has finalized its first plan to help address the problem of missing and murdered Native people on one of the largest reservations in Montana. (Department of Justice via AP)

As US spotlights those missing or dead in native communities, prosecutors work to solve their cases

“We need allies in this work, and we need every advocate to remember the historical trauma and suffering of Indigenous people throughout the U.S., including Alaska and Hawaii,” Pope went on to say.

To talk to an advocate for missing and murdered indigenous people, visit the StrongHearts website or call the helpline at 844-762-8483.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WLNS 6 News.