Another Betrayal of Our Native American Ancestors of the Land

It’s no secret that we have broken every promise to the Native American community since the beginning of the colonial period. We have stolen their lands and confined them to reservations. We have not supported the infrastructure that allows for clean running water and proper sanitation. Lack of resources has resulted in soaring drug and alcohol abuse rates and disproportionate unemployment rates.

There is another, even less reported truth in Native Communities: the disappearance of Native women and girls. According to the Murdered and Missing Indigenous Women website, “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 US 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.”

It is important to note from the outset that this is not only a problem on reservation lands, but in cities across the United States. According to the report, Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls: a Snapshot of data from 71 Urban Cities in the United States, 506 cases from 71 cities from Boston to Seattle were identified. Fifty-six percent were murdered, 25 percent were classified as missing and 19 percent had an unknown cause. This likely is severe under-reporting due to the limited resources of urban Indian health institutes and poor data collection by numerous cities. Seventy-one percent of American Indian and Alaskan Native women and girls live in urban areas. This includes LGBTQ, non-binary and Two Spirit individuals who suffer disproportionately higher degrees of violence, just as they do in white communities.

Beyond all the statistics there are other, more troubling reasons that missing Native American women and girls are under-reported. One is what the late Gwen Ifill called “Missing White Woman Syndrome.” This refers to the disproportionate coverage given to white women who go missing or are murdered, as compared to people of color. The recent coverage of Gabby Petito is a good example. As I noted last week, blond hair and blue eyes make the news cycle every time.

A second reason is the overall invisibility of Native people in our culture. Our cultural stereotypes of indigenous peoples stretch back to colonial days. The only positive image many people have of indigenous peoples is that they helped the early settlers and shared the first Thanksgiving meal. Unfortunately this is mostly myth. But it helps us feel better about ourselves as white people. Beyond this historic myth, images of Native peoples are portrayed in barbaric and violent images and stories, which are largely hyperbolic. This means that our images of Native peoples are hugely distorted. And since people of color do not sell news stories and newspapers, there is little opportunity for correction.

A third and perhaps most troubling reason is indifference. As long as Native American women and girls remain invisible we do not have to deal with the horrible reality of skyrocketing rates of violence, rape and murder against them. It may flit across our news screen for a nanosecond, but we are able to easily dismiss it as something that is “reservation business” despite the fact that many Native American and Alaskan Native women live in urban areas. It has to do with who we see as fully human and who matters. People of color matter less in our culture, no matter what the color of their skin.

The crisis of disappearing Native Women and Alaskan Native women and girls is a social and a theological problem. It is social because it rests on institutional racism that protects white privilege. It is theological because it denies the essential personhood of individuals who are created in the image of God and have inherent dignity and worth. It is important to note that the religious or spiritual practice of the women is irrelevant. For those of us who claim the Abrahamic faiths (Islam, Judaism and Christianity) each person, regardless of belief, is endowed with worth and value by the Creator.

It is the action of the Creator and not the result of any action, behavior or belief of the individual. The truth is that God loves all people regardless of creed, skin color, gender, sexual orientation/identity or ethnic identity. God’s love and worth are bestowed upon all people (and creation too) regardless of our approval/disapproval, understanding/lack of understanding or judgement.

There are things we can do. Find out if your state keeps statistics on violence against Native women. If not, lobby for it to do so. Educate yourself about Native communities and the unique dynamics that impact factors that cause violence. Mostly, dig deep for compassion and awareness.  Our ancestors of the land need our voices and our action. Let’s not break yet another commitment to this marginalized community.