Indigenous Rights Movements & the Law

The National Inquiry’s Final Report reveals that persistent and deliberate human and Indigenous rights violations and abuses are the root cause behind Canada’s staggering rates of violence against Indigenous women, girls and 2SLGBTQQIA people. The two volume report calls for transformative legal and social changes to resolve the crisis that has devastated Indigenous communities across the country.

Reports Amnesty International's 2004 Stolen Sisters report was one of the first reports to systematically document the pattern of violence experienced by

In this article, on the basis of interviews with seven Navajo women, the author discusses the Navajo woman’s perspective on domestic violence. These discussions reveal several factors that distinguish the Navajo woman’s experience of abuse from that of the Anglo3 woman. These factors are examined in light of historical and contemporary understandings of the Navajo world. Three cultural elements can help us understand the Navajo woman’s experience of abuse: the cultural concept of hózhó, the searing tale (in the Creation Story) of the quarrel between First Man and First Woman, a quarrel that brought great tragedy to the people; and the Kinaáldá, the female puberty rite. It is the author’s argument that these facets of the Navajo culture, in addition to Western explanations for women’s staying with abusive partners, are powerful contributors to the Navajo woman’s understanding of abuse in her life and if we are to develop successful techniques for intervention, we must consider these elements as well as those of the dominant culture.

Nationwide, the voices of Indigenous people have united to raise awareness of missing and murdered Indigenous woman and girls (MMIWG). Though awareness of the crisis is growing, data on the realities of this violence is scarce.

This report focuses on sexual violence against indigenous women in the USA. Governments have a responsibility to ensure that women are able to enjoy their right to freedom from sexual violence. As citizens of particular tribal nations, the welfare and safety of American Indian and Alaska Native women are directly linked to the authority and […]

Resource extraction takes a toll on more than just the economy and the environment.

When Meskee Yanabah Yatsayte started Navajo Nation Missing Persons Updates seven years ago, she’d never heard of the acronym MMIWG, which stands for missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls and wasn’t widely used at the time.

The Billings Gazette has continued to examine one of the most urgent issues in Montana and our region — missing and murdered indigenous women and girls.

While violence against women plagues many communities across the country and around the world, the Native American indigenous groups in North America are particularly hard struck by this devastating problem. Missing and murdered indigenous women

A program in Washington state is intended to trigger an effective search and raise awareness of the problem

Artist Jaime Black says the REDress Project is an expression of her grief for thousands of Native victims

These are the cases authorities say do not involve foul play

U.S. lawmakers are beginning to grapple with the crisis of missing and murdered Indigenous women. Canada’s inquiry suggests the road ahead will be steep.

The death of Gabby Petito draws attention to a form of widespread gendered violence in the US that has long been hiding in plain sight

Gabby Petito’s case highlights the power of media attention but for Indigenous communities it also emphasizes the lack of attention given to missing and murdered Native people

The intentional murder of women because they are women is a problem globally.

It leads to violence against, and the trafficking of, Native women

Attempts to address the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women Crisis could be counteracted by the problems “man camps” cause for reservation communities.

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The Government of Canada is launching a national inquiry into missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls.

For years, tribal citizens and grass roots organizations sought to bring attention to the issues surrounding missing or murdered American Indians and Alaska Natives. In tribal consultations and listening sessions, tribal leaders, advocates, law enforcement, community members, and others raised concerns about the disappearance or murder of American Indian and Alaska Native people across the United States. Tribes began taking concerted action to address these issues in their communities.

Reclaim, rematriate, and create.

The Red Women Rising Project strives to increase public awareness of domestic violence and sexual assault as it affects Native American women living urban areas. Through development of various resources, tools, media, and technical assistance, Red Women Rising seeks to promote justice and healing for Urban Indian women.

Our women, girls, and two-spirts are being taken from us in an alarming way. As of 2016, the National Crime Information Center has reported 5,712 cases of missing American Indian and Alaska Native women and girls. Strikingly, the U.S Department of Justice missing persons database has only reported 116 cases. The majority of these murders are committed by non-Native people on Native-owned land. The lack of communication combined with jurisdictional issues between state, local, federal, and tribal law enforcement, make it nearly impossible to begin the investigative process.

Sovereign Bodies Institute (SBI) builds on Indigenous traditions of data gathering and knowledge transfer to create, disseminate, and put into action research on gender and sexual violence against Indigenous people. SBI is committed to: conducting, supporting, and mobilizing culturally-informed and community-engaged research on gender and sexual violence against Indigenous people uplifting Indigenous researchers, knowledge keepers, and data visualists in their work to research and disseminate data on gender and sexual violence against Indigenous people empowering Indigenous communities and nations to continue their work to end gender and sexual violence against Indigenous people, through data-driven partnerships that enhance research efforts, develop best practices, and transform data to action to protect and heal their peoples. SBI is a home for generating new knowledge and understandings of how Indigenous nations and communities are impacted by gender and sexual violence, and how they may continue to work towards healing and freedom from such violence. In the spirit of building such freedom, SBI is strongly committed to upholding the sovereignty of all bodies Indigenous peoples hold sacred--our physical bodies, nations, land, and water--and does not accept grants from colonial governments or extractive industries. Similarly, SBI’s work is not limited by colonial borders, concepts of gender, politics of identity or recognition, or ways of knowing. SBI honors the epistemologies and lifeways of indigenous peoples, and is bound by accountability to the land, our ancestors, and each other. SBI is fiscally sponsored by Open Collective Foundation.

Our mission is to stop violence against Native women and children by advocating for social change in our communities.

Our mission is to stop violence against Native women and children by advocating for social change in our communities.