MMIW
Stopping the violence against Indigenous women, girls, and Two-Spirit people
#MMIW #MMIWG #MMIWG2S
**This page contains sensitive content that can be upsetting or triggering.**
MMIW is a growing movement to address the ongoing violence and genocide that affects Native women, girls, and Two-Spirits across the US and Canada.
On May 5—the National Day of Awareness—we wear red to call back the missing spirits of our women, two spirits, and children and to raise awareness of their silenced voices.
KNOW THE FACTS
Indigenous women are murdered at a rate
10x
HIGHER
than the national average
Murder is the
3rd
LEADING
cause of death for Indigenous women
More than
95%
OF CASES
are never covered by national media
These harrowing statistics (and many more) can be found in publications located on our MMIW Resources page. We encourage you to explore these tools, fact sheets, and reports to help us raise awareness, bring justice to hurting families, and end the violence.
Miigwech, Inc. is working with the Attorney General's office to create an official MMIW Task force for the State of Michigan.
WHAT WE ARE DOING
RAISING AWARENESS
ADVOCATING FOR FAMILIES
STOPPING THE GENOCIDE
Since 2020, our MMIW Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok posts have received thousands of views and shares. These and other outreach efforts have garnered increased awareness and understanding across the nation, but particularly within our Great Lakes communities where our reach is strongest.
In 2022, our team and families of stolen sisters met with Michigan's Attorney General Dana Nessel to educate her office about MMIW and develop plans of action. We discussed the lack of action and legal roadblocks at the systems level and how these things have perpetuated the injustice for decades.
"I've made it a real priority in the department for us to have these specializied investigations, sexual abuse cases especially but also cold case homicides, with an emphasis on marginalized communities that we feel did not get a proper or appropriate response by law enforcement," the Attorney General said in the meeting.
"Some victims have been denied justice more than others...above everything, you deserve to have people who are transparent with you, provide all of the documents and data, any evidence at all, and sit down and review it with you. There's no question that [these families] deserve that, so we're going to make that happen."
Our director sent a follow-up letter to her office a few months later to make sure she keeps her promises, which include phone calls to hurting families, the opening of cold cases, and new legal action.
The Task Force will aim for the following goals:
-
Initiate special investigations into MMIW and Indian Boarding School Survivors, with an accurate and up-to-date list of cases
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Re-open cold cases
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Increase transparency throughout the entire investigative process, including data gathering and dissemination
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Personal follow-ups and case reviews from the AG
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Cultural competency training for investigative staff and law enforcement