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Alaska has the fourth highest rate of missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls in the nation. And among cities, Anchorage has the third highest numbers.
It’s a problem the state has mostly ignored, but as Rhonda McBride from our flagship station KNBA reports, the state legislature passed a bill to bring both attention and resources to the problem.
“I want to be sure that I convey this epidemic is impacting every region of the state. Urban. Rural. And in between.”
State Rep. C. J. McCormick (D-AK) says the bill is finally a response to those who have long cried out for the state to address the crisis of missing and murdered Alaska Natives, a cause that goes well beyond the list of names.
“There’s individuals that I went to school with. Unfortunately, my staffer who helped work on this bill, has family members that are part of these lists as well. I’m sure that members of this body, who even have family members, that are part of this list.”
The Bethel Democrat says the legislation aims to reduce these lists by hiring two permanent MMIP investigators to focus on unsolved cases.
It also requires police training to include cultural education and creates a nine-member review commission.
“For advocates and families, this is a huge moment for us.”
Charlene Apok.
Charlene Apok (Iñupiaq), Director of Data for Indigenous Justice, says it’s exciting that so many groups came together to champion the bill.
Apok is director of Data for Indigenous Justice and says the best part is that Alaska Natives helped to build this coalition by tapping into their traditional values, which focuses on building relationships and using the power of storytelling.
“And as we carried those stories, collected the data, and said it, over and over and over again, and then we have our collective voices, that’s the power of that. That changes from being a situation happened one-off to a collective truth that cannot be denied.”
Apok says with strong relationships in place, the bill’s provisions will have a better chance of success, but there’s still a lot of work ahead to bring about lasting change.
But at least one lawmaker denied his vote for the bill, State Rep. David Eastman (R-AK).
He questioned the need for police to get cultural training and worries the bill would add to an already heavy workload.
(Courtesy SRMT Police / Facebook)
The Saint Regis Mohawk Tribal (SRMT) Police have been awarded an over $850,000 grant from the New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services as part of the Law Enforcement Grant Program.
This grant will allow the Tribal Police to modernize their operations and increase their ability to effectively solve and prevent crime by being able to purchase things like license plate readers, computer-aided dispatch systems, advanced software solutions, drones, and gunshot detection devices.
In a statement, SRMT Chief of Police Mathew Rourke said: “I would like to thank the Governor’s office for making the Saint Regis Mohawk Tribal Police a direct recipient of grant funding. The new technology and equipment we will be able to purchase with these funds will greatly enhance our capabilities and help us better serve and protect our community.”
Chief Rourke says SRMT will utilize this additional funding to ensure the safety and security of all residents.
Sealaska Heritage Institute (SHI) has published a trilogy of illustrated dictionaries that teach vocabulary for the Tlingit, Haida, and Tsimshian languages.
The series, developed by SHI staff and contributors, features “Everyday Tlingit”, “Everyday Haida”, and “Everyday Tsimshian”, and is intended to teach Native words to children in grades K through five, but may also be used by people of all ages who want to learn the vocabularies.
SHI says the goal is to increase exposure to the Tlingit, Haida, and Tsimshian languages of Southeast Alaska.
In the booklets, Native words are superimposed over everyday scenes, including the bedroom, bathroom, laundry room, clothes, kitchen, food and drinks.
Each volume includes a glossary with English translations.
The books are not currently available for purchase, but SHI is researching ways to further their distribution.
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