Investing in community
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It's no secret that the epidemic of missing and murdered Indigenous women plagues Montana.
Indigenous people comprise 6.7% of the state's population and account for, on average, 26% of Montana's missing persons population. In response to the growing crisis, communities have organized volunteer search parties, organizations have donated funds to support searches, people use social media to help find missing loved ones, and Montana's Legislature established a missing Indigenous persons task force.
While these solutions are useful to many, they typically offer support after a loved one has gone missing, rather than preventing a disappearance.
When Candice English, a Blackfeet woman, founded Sisters United, an organization dedicated to helping Indigenous women and girls, she knew she wanted to help combat the missing and murdered Indigenous women crisis. But Candice also wanted to be thoughtful in her support.
"What can we do to prevent this from happening?" she wondered.
This idea ultimately inspired Candice, through Sisters United, to donate to the Great Falls Public Schools Foundation.
The $20,000 donation will support Indigenous educational programs, including a buffalo hunt, the incorporation of Indigenous plants in schools and a lecture series with elders, among other things.
Candice hopes the programs help Native and non-Native students engage in their community and connect with Indigenous culture. And Dugan Coburn, director of Indian Education for the school district, said the donation will help students "get a head start on learning about their own culture."
This week in the news ...
MSU to offer doctoral program in rural and Indigenous health
Headstones in Browning cemetery vandalized
Wolves have walked with us for centuries. States are weakening their protections.
Interior Department hires former top cop to review jail deaths on his watch
Abby Roque is the first Indigenous woman to play for USA Hockey in the Winter Olymics.
Nora Mabie
Indigenous Communities Reporter, nmabie@greatfallstribune.com
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This article originally appeared on Great Falls Tribune: Investing in community
