November is Native American Heritage Month

November is Native American Heritage Month! This month is dedicated to celebrating the rich and diverse cultures, traditions, and histories of Indigenous peoples. It is also an opportune time to help raise awareness about the unique challenges faced by Indigenous communities, especially Indigenous women, girls, and two-spirit people.

Statistics courtesy of Native Women's Wilderness:

  • Indigenous Women (girls +) murdered 10x higher than all other ethnicities.

  • Murder is the 3rd leading cause of death for Indigenous Women (Centers for Disease Control).

  • More than 4 out of 5 Indigenous Women have experienced violence (84.3%) (National Institute of Justice Report).

  • More than half of Indigenous Women experience sexual violence (56.1%).

  • More than half Indigenous Women have been physically abused by their intimate partners (55.5 percent)

Pregnant Indigenous woman cradling her belly that looks like planet Earth with a baby visible.

Jackie Fawn via @seedingsovereignty

Unfortunately, a large majority of these crimes are committed by Non-native people on Indigenous lands. According to Native Women's Wilderness, lack of communication combined with jurisdictional issues between state, local, federal, and tribal law enforcement, make it nearly impossible to even begin the investigative process.

Here are some great organizations to follow and support this month:

Native Women's Wilderness
Coalition to Stop Violence Against Native Women
National Indigenous Women's Resource Center
National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls
StrongHearts Native Helpline
Seeding Sovereignty
Uniting Three Fires Against Violence

All my HER love,
Maria

Maria started interning with We Are HER in the summer of 2019. Since then, Maria has volunteered as our email newsletter content creator. We are so glad to have Maria on our team.

Stevie CroisantComment