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Stop violence against Native women.
Native women are facing a crisis of violence. Homicide is the third leading cause of death among Native girls and women aged 10 to 24, and the fifth leading cause of death for Native women aged 25 to 34. In the United States today, American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) women are nearly 2.5x more likely to be sexually assaulted than women in the general population. 70% of these violent victimizations are committed by persons of a different race (Department of Justice).
Happy Tuesday and welcome back. Today we're focusing on the violence that Native women, girls and Two-Spirit people experience in the U.S. and Canada through my conversation with Lauren Schad. This continues our focus on those missing and murdered, in part, because of longstanding bias and discrimination.
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Nicole
TAKE ACTION
Amplify the voices of MMIWG2 families and survivors of violence using the hashtags #MMIW, #MMIWG and #MMIWG2S on social media.
Donate to the Red Ribbon Skirt Society, which memorializes those lost to violence and supports their loved ones.
Consider: What local resources are available for missing, runaway, and exploited Indigenous youth? How can you help create more resources or raise awareness of the existing resources?
Action items inspired by the MMIWG2S & MMIP Organizing Toolkit, created by the Sovereign Bodies Institute. Read the full study to find more.
GET EDUCATED
Lauren Schad. Photo taken by Jean (@blstrt_)
By Nicole Cardoza (she/her)
Native women are facing a crisis of violence.
Homicide is the third leading cause of death among Native girls and women aged 10 to 24, and the fifth leading cause of death for Native women aged 25 to 34. In the United States today, American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) women are nearly 2.5x more likely to be sexually assaulted than women in the general population. 70% of these violent victimizations are committed by persons of a different race (Department of Justice).
As we’ve reported in the past, lack of media attention and misreporting has minimized this issue. According to a study by the Urban Indian Health Institute, many victims are often racially misclassified, skewing the data. In addition, there are tense relationships between law enforcement and American Indian and Alaska Native communities. This, paired with media bias in reporting missing and murdered persons cases, leads to a wide discrepancy in data. In 2016, there were 5,712 reported cases of MMIWG2S, but only 116 of them were logged in the Department of Justice website (Urban Indian Health Institute). However, community leaders and activists emphasize that this data doesn’t accurately represent the true number of the population that goes missing.
So, advocates are rallying for justice. Conversations with the hashtags #MMIW, #MMIWG and #MMIWG2S are garnering intention both in the United States and abroad. (The abbreviations stand for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women; Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls; and Missing and Murdered Women, Girls and Two-Spirit people, respectively) (APA). This organizing is holding federal and local governments accountable; Savanna's Act, passed earlier this year, aims to increase data coordination and collection and improve protocol between law enforcement and Native communities (Teen Vogue).
It’s critical that we amplify efforts to raise awareness and take action. To learn more about this injustice and how we can support, I interviewed my friend Lauren Schad, athlete and activist, on her work advocating for MMIW.
How does being a professional athlete influence your advocacy efforts?
In my experience as a professional athlete, I have found that there is a lot of confusion and misinformation about us as Native peoples – not just in my homelands of the United States, but in Europe as well. Therefore, having the opportunity to live overseas for my career now allows me to reach an audience on an international level. The networking system that is naturally embedded within the sports community allows for information to travel quickly. Meaning, the work of others and myself regarding our advocacy for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Womxn now become an open dialogue for people on a global spectrum.
You’ve been vocal about supporting MMIW throughout your career – on and off the court. Do you experience any pushback?
There is always going to be pushback or denial when you are fighting against a system inherently prejudiced against BIPOC womxn. People are often unaware of this decimation against Indigenous womxn and the staggering statistics we face, solely because of the lack of coverage, documentation, legislation, representation, and resources outside of Indigenous communities. Our people are fighting this daily, but when there is a systemic structure already in place to silence us, the battle for justice becomes that much harder.
On more than one occasion, I have had strangers come up to me and try to validate actions blatantly harmful to Native Womxn by telling me how I should have felt about the situation. I have been questioned about the authenticity of my testimony simply because people cannot believe that “In this day and age, this still happens?” I have even heard that MMIWG2S is not, in fact, a motion of people demanding justice, protection, and resources for our womxn and children, but a political movement. No matter how much you progress, there will always be people, governments, and corporations who choose to ignore and diminish the endless work our people have endured since the beginning of colonization – including the ongoing work and efforts by the community for our stolen sisters.
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The way I overcome this is by remembering and honoring all of our stolen sisters. Reminding ourselves that this is not about us. It is about them – and giving them a voice when theirs has been silenced. It is our innate responsibility as Indigenous people to protect one another, to honor these lives and do right by them.
I look to other advocates and strong womxn fighting for the same objective. The Red Ribbon Skirt Society and Lily Mendoza in my hometown, Jordan Marie Brings Three White Horses Daniel, Rosalie Fish, Sunny Red Bear-Whitcombe, Ashley Callingbull, to name a few, alongside many many other phenomenal womxn, all show the power that one voice can hold. Now imagine if there is enough of us speaking up. The change we are looking for is inevitable. Protection for our womxn is inevitable. So choosing to give up, or stop, is not an option.
How do you feel social media plays a role in advocating for MMIW?
Social media can be a critical tool in relaying knowledge, especially for a motion like MMIW. When you have a group of people severely lacking representation in mass media, those people must find ways to spread that information across large platforms to larger audience to make an impact. For a cause as large-scale as MMIW, social media plays a key role in educating those who are unaware of this genocide happening to Indigenous womxn. On various platforms, you are confronted by many Indigenous advocates speaking up about what they believe in and find important. And because of this, this idea of harmless ignorance can no longer be used as an excuse. It has the ability to give us as Native peoples a voice on platforms you wouldn’t often see elsewhere. We can now create the content and narrative of our own stories and peoples without a go-between. It’s just us and our voices. There is something extremely powerful in that.
How do you wish other people, particularly those that are not a part of the Indigenous community, would take action?
For those not a part of the Indigenous community, I hope they take the time to educate themselves further – not only about MMIW, but the ongoing persecution Indigenous peoples have faced throughout history. Then, once they have listened to the attestation of Native peoples, open that dialect to the people in their circle. Become an ally and help champion an important cause. If I have learned anything by speaking up about MMIW, it is that the oppression we have faced is an ongoing effort to dehumanize and silence Native peoples as a whole.
Everything is interconnected with one another: the exploitation of the land, our stolen sisters, the hypersexualization and caricaturing of our people (read more)...each are a cause and effect of one another. Our voices are powerful entities, and if we use them, we can create intentional and impactful change.
Lauren Schad (she/her) is the youngest of three daughters born and raised in Paha Sapa (Black Hills) in Rapid City, South Dakota. She is currently a professional starter for Volleyball Nantes. Inspired by Rosalie Fish, Lauren dedicates each match to a woman/child on the ongoing list of Missing Murdered and Indigenous women, baring their name on her hand. With the amount of spectators that attend matches, she believes this movement plays an instrumental part in opening the dialogue on an international scale; that in order to educate and bring awareness to this epidemic, one must first get people to ask the question. Read her full bio >
KEY TAKEAWAYS
Native women are facing a crisis of violence.
Over 5,000 Native women are marked as missing persons, but a small percentage are recognized by the federal government
Media bias, misreporting, and distrust with law enforcement all causes discrepancies in reported cases, making it difficult to gather accurate data
Raising awareness about this issue helps drive action by local and federal government
RELATED ISSUES
10/12/2020 | Honor Indigenous Peoples’ Day.
10/21/2020 | Change racist sports team names.
6/25/2020 | Capitalize B in Black and I in Indigenous.
7/5/2020 | Support the Navajo Nation through COVID-19.
PLEDGE YOUR SUPPORT
Thank you for all your financial contributions! If you haven't already, consider making a monthly donation to this work. These funds will help me operationalize this work for greatest impact.
Subscribe on Patreon | Give one-time on PayPal | Venmo @nicoleacardoza
Support the Navajo Nation through COVID-19.
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Happy Sunday,
This week looks at the impact of COVID-19 on the Navajo Nation, and the systemic marginalization that has created vast inequities in basic infrastructure. This is part of our recurring Sunday series analyzing how racism exacerbates the impact of this global pandemic – you can catch up in the archives.
As our team of writers grows, you'll see new bylines within the newsletter to celebrate the diverse voices carrying the conversation forward. This team is possible because of your contributions – you can invest one-time on Paypal or Venmo (@nicoleacardoza) or monthly on Patreon to keep this community growing. Thank you for your support!
Nicole
TAKE ACTION
Donate to the local mutual aid fund Families to Families Ajooba’ Hasin, a grassroots mutual aid fund organized by ThunderVoice Eagle and his sister Alicia to support in the Bodaway / Gap area of Navajo Nation.
Visit the Tribal Communities COVID-19 Action Doc, organized by Diné poet Kinsale Hueston to stay up to date with recent needs on the ground in Navajo Nation.
GET EDUCATED
As COVID-19 continues to ravage the country, none have felt its impact more acutely than the Navajo Nation, (the Diné People) the second largest Native American tribe. Although reported cases have slowed over the past few days, the community has been disproportionately impacted. Over 8,200 people have tested positive for the virus (according to the IHS), resulting in a higher per capita infection rate than New York and New Jersey (Native News). The death toll equates to a death rate of 177 per 100,000 (latest states show 375 total)– more than 16 states including Kansas, Nebraska, and South Dakota (The Guardian).
This is because of long-time systemic racism against the Native community. After the expansion of the U.S. westwards forced thousands of Navajo to leave their homes, America reserved a stretch of land where they could maintain an illusion of sovereignty. The federal government pledged to support Navajo Nation with necessary infrastructure – like funding for education, healthcare, and other services. But as coronavirus has swept through the reservation, it has underscored many of the unkept promises that have created social and economic inequalities that continue to affect the tribe, exacerbating the impact of the virus (BBC).
As a result, the Navajo community has limited access to the essentials. The Navajo Nation is a food desert with only 13 grocery stores (NPR). One-third of residents do not have running water, and in some towns, it’s 90% (Bloomberg Law). Staying at home and social distancing become problematic when residents have to travel and congregate frequently to get access to basic needs. And preventative measures like handwashing become incredibly difficult to practice without running water at home.
Beyond that, information – particularly the rapid developments of COVID-19 – is difficult to access. According to the Navajo Tribal Utility Authority, 60% of Navajo lack Internet access, which means many people can’t hear regular announcements from public health officials or tune in to frequent Facebook Live town halls with the Nation's president (NPR).
The underfunded healthcare system isn’t designed to meet basic needs, let alone a global public health crisis. The United States allocates just $3,943 per person for health care for Native Americans through the Indian Health Service, less than half the $8,602 spent by the Bureau of Prisons for health care per prisoner (NYTimes).
Fatality rates from COVID-19 are higher partially because of higher levels of pre-existing conditions, like asthma, diabetes, hypertension, and heart disease (NYTimes). As the virus peaked, the Navajo Nation sent the direst patients from the reservation to hospitals equipped with ICUs in neighboring states. But this may not be possible in the future, given that over 80% of Arizona’s adult ICU beds are full – almost 40% with Covid-19 patients (The Guardian). It will continue to prove difficult as the virus surges (NPR).
On March 27, the Trump administration pledged $8 billion in CARES Act funding to tribal governments across the country, which was desperately needed; by March 20, less than a month after the pandemic hit the reservation, the tribe already had spent $4 million on COVID-19 response efforts (AZ Central). But it took over 80 days, numerous lawsuits and public pressure for the Trump administration to pay tribal nations the COVID-19 relief they were promised by the federal government (Indianz). The Navajo Nation only received $600 million in May, a “Band-aid” to fix the systemic issues preventing adequate support for the community (NPR).
Despite this, about 25% of the population on the reservation have been tested, one of the highest rates anywhere. In comparison, Arizona has tested 5% of its population, and nationwide the figure stands at 8%, according to the Covid Tracking Project. Mutual aid – community-driven, volunteer support that benefits all – have made this possible.
ThunderVoice Eagle, an artist and local leader of Navajo (Diné) and Totonoc descent, shares more about how his community is responding to the impact of COVID-19.
The rapid response of the Navajo Community to build emergency mutual aid relief groups has been incredible. Rather than waiting on the government to fail the Diné people once again, the local communities have organized and mobilized to take care of one another, primarily led by women (a nod to the history of a matriarchal community).
From Ordenda Tribe and designer BYellowtail’s collaboration to get thousands of masks to remote parts of Navajo Nation, to Ethel Branch’s massive COVID-19 Relief fund that’s raised over four million dollars for mutual aid, to Kinsale Hueston’s social media campaign highlighting the disparities Navajo Nation faces in every sector of society and raising support for a wide range of mutual aid groups, to the Families to Families fund initiated by my sisters on the frontlines in my home Chapter of Navajo Nation (Bodaway / Gap), we have seen an overnight response that has transformed our community and saved lives.
“Though the systems that my people face are often stacked against us intentionally, we have come together to care for each other when others have once again failed. As we move into the next phase of Covid-19 response, along with aligning with our Black brothers and sisters, we as Diné and as Native people are working together to combat the systems that oppress us”.
Following in the push for the change of racist names and terminology in pop culture (BBC), along with the removal of colonizing statues (Indian Country Today), just this week’s traction has grown to get rid of dehumanizing mascots (Illuminatives). On July third and fourth the Sioux Nation has once again mobilized to put pressure on the government to return the sacred Black Hills land that was promised to them in the Fort Laramie Treaty of 1868 (Newsweek). Discussions have been elevated around food sovereignty, access to adequate healthcare, Tribal Sovereignty, land rights, land reparations, combatting appropriation, and water rights.
The Diné people, along with many other sovereign Native Nations, will use the momentum our mutual care during COVID-19 has grown, to push further for equity for our people.
PLEDGE YOUR SUPPORT
Thank you for all your financial contributions! If you haven't already, consider making a monthly donation to this work. These funds will help me operationalize this work for greatest impact.
Subscribe on Patreon | Give one-time on PayPal | Venmo @nicoleacardoza