Schatz highlights Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women Awareness Week

U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) marked Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women Awareness Week on the Senate floor, calling for more federal action to address the ongoing crisis. Schatz, vice chair of the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs, highlighted the disproportionate violence faced by Native women and girls, including murder being the third leading cause of death among American Indian and Alaska Native women. He stressed the decades-long failure of the federal government to adequately address the issue, leaving many communities to bear the burden of finding justice on their own. According to a press release from his office, Schatz noted his role in the 2022 reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act, which restored tribal jurisdiction over certain crimes and expanded resources for Native communities, but said, “There remains so much work to be done to ensure that Native people feel safe in their homes and communities.”