May is Missing and Murdered Indigenous People (MMIP) Awareness Month, a time dedicated to raising awareness of the incredibly alarming number of Indigenous women, girls, and people who have either gone missing or have been murdered in the United States.
'This is a very important issue, especially when you consider that Oklahoma has the second-densest population of Native People in the entire United States,' said Lori Gonzalez, Vice President of Advocacy Services for Domestic Violence Intervention Services (DVIS). 'And, Oklahoma is rated 10th in the nation for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women.'
According to the latest statistics, Indigenous women and girls are murdered at a rate that is ten (10) times higher than that of all other ethnicities and murder is the leading cause of death for the same group. In addition, more than 4 out of 5 Indigenous women have experienced violence; while more than half have been physically abused by their intimate partners and/or have experienced sexual violence.
'The statistics are alarming and this is an issue that is vastly under-reported,' said Gonzalez. 'I think it is an issue that the general public is not aware of.'
The most recent number from the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs) reports seventy-four (74) missing Native Americans, in Oklahoma.
'There are many things we can do,' said Gonzalez. 'The first step is education, then using your voice and of course, offering support, not shame, to those people and families affected by this. Anyone affected by this needs to take care of themselves; leave room to grieve and try to identify coping mechanisms and skills to manage their mental health,' she said.
Indigenous people in Oklahoma, while also assigning a point person to work closely with the family members of victims.
'This is a growing problem that affects so many people and anything that we can do to confront this issue is of the utmost importance and something that is very important to DVIS' she said. Gonzalez said that DVIS can help those who have been affected by connecting them to resources and assistance.
Trained counselors are available by texting the word NATIVE to 741741; or by contacting the StrongHearts Native Helpline — 1-844-7NATIVE (762-8483).