It has been almost six years since the National Institute of Justice reported the results of a study it funded which included sobering facts on the violence against American Indian and Alaska Native women. Six years and very little has been done to address the crisis.
The study looked at the prevalence of psychological aggression and physical violence by intimate partners, stalking, and sexual violence among American Indian and Alaska Native women. The results were profound.
- For American Indian and Alaska Native women, 4 in 5 (84.3%) have experienced violence in their lifetime. This includes:
- 56.1% have experienced sexual violence.
- 55.5% have endured physical intimate partner violence.
- 48.8% have experienced stalking.
- 96% of Native female victims of sexual violence experience violence at the hands of a non-Native perpetrator.
- 21% have experienced inter-racial violence.
The murder rate of Native women is more than 10 times the national average on some reservations.
Two 2020 laws have requirements that could help address aspects of the crisis, depending on how the Departments of Justice and Interior implement them. But the agencies have missed some of the requirements' deadlines. For example, they have not yet set up a joint commission to explore the issue.
The GAO was asked to review the federal response to the missing or murdered AI/AN women crisis. The report was to examine the extent to which (1) the number of missing or murdered AI/AN women in the U.S. is known and (2) what steps the DOJ and DOI have taken to address the crisis. GAO reviewed available data on missing persons and violent deaths, relevant reports, and agency documentation, including agency policies and procedures.
Among the recommendations made by the GOA were that the DOJ develop a plan for how it will accomplish ongoing analyses of missing or murdered AI/AN women data and that DOJ and DOI both develop plans to implement the requirements in Savanna's Act and the Not Invisible Act of 2019 that remain unfulfilled past their statutory deadlines.
For more information:
"Examining Violence Against American Indian and Alaska Women"