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The U.S. Government must protect Indigenous women from sexual violence

Sexual violence against Indigenous women in the United States is at epidemic proportions. More than 1 in 2 of all American Indian and Alaska Native women have experienced sexual violence in their lifetime, and they are 2.2 times more likely than non-Hispanic white women to be raped.

The U.S. government has failed to protect Indigenous women from sexual violence and is restricting tribal governments from doing so. Amnesty International reporting finds that high rates of sexual violence have been compounded by the:

Federal government’s steady erosion of tribal government authority
Complex jurisdictional maze that Native survivors of sexual violence must navigate when seeking justice
Chronic under-resourcing of the law enforcement agencies and Indigenous health services
Inadequate response of justice systems to crimes of sexual violence

The U.S. government’s inaction is a serious human rights issue. This epidemic of violence has raged for too long, and Indigenous women cannot wait any longer.

Raise your voice: Call on Congress to act now and protect Indigenous women from sexual violence.

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Dear {contact_data~lastName},

I am writing as your constituent to ask you to take action to stop sexual violence against American Indian and Alaska Native women.

More than 1 in 2 (56.1%) of all American Indian and Alaska Native women have experienced sexual violence in their lifetime, and they are 2.2 times more likely than non-Hispanic white women to be raped. These high rates of sexual violence have been compounded by a complex jurisdictional maze, under-resourcing of law enforcement and medical services, and the inadequate response of justice systems. All of these factors make it extremely difficult, if not impossible, for many survivors to bring their perpetrators to justice.

Amnesty International has documented the failure of the US government to adequately prevent and respond to this epidemic in their new report The Never-Ending Maze: Continued failure to protect Indigenous women from sexual violence in the USA, a summary of which is here: https://www.amnestyusa.org/maze/

Amnesty found that there have been no significant changes to the rates of sexual violence against American Indian and Alaska Native women in the past 15 years, and legislation that has been implemented to protect these women has been minimally impactful. Piecemeal legislation, even with good intentions, cannot begin to protect Native women from violence until the jurisdictional complexities within Indian country are resolved and Indigenous services are fully funded.

As your constituent, I’m asking you to commit to meaningful change to prevent and respond to sexual violence against Indigenous women, including working toward:

- Legislatively overriding the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision on Oliphant v. Suquamish, which would allow for the full recognition of the inherent concurrent jurisdiction of tribal authorities over all crimes committed on tribal land.

- Ensuring that the Indian Health Service is fully funded so that it can meet 100% of the health needs of all Indigenous peoples in the United States and that it is adequately providing post-rape care to survivors.

- Making available long-term, predictable, and adequate funding for tribal law enforcement, justice services, and culturally appropriate support services.

- Mandating and funding data collection, analysis, and research on crimes of violence against Indigenous women.

Please act now to stop this epidemic of violence against Indigenous women.

{user_data~First Name} {user_data~Last Name}

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