In this guide to the MMIW Awareness Movement, we’ll be looking at:
- The meaning of MMIW, MMIP, and MMIR
- Causes of the MMIW crisis
- MMIW Statistics
- What does the red hand mean for MMIW?
- What you can do to prevent future MMIW?
- Where to donate
- A book about MMIW
By the time you read this article, you’ll have a full idea of what the MMIW crisis is, why it’s happening, and how you can help. Let’s start with the basics:
What is the meaning of MMIW, MMIP, and MMIR?
MMIW stands for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women. In recent years more acronyms have been created, such as MMIP and MMIR, which stand for Missing and Murdered Indigenous People and Missing and Murdered Indigenous Relatives.
These acronyms were created because the problem extends beyond women: members of the LGBTQ+ community are also at an increased risk of violence, and it is widely believed that the few statistics around exactly how many LGBTQ+ Indigenous people have disappeared or been murdered are gross underestimates.
And violence isn’t just an issue for Indigenous women and LGBT+ people- it’s also 82% of Indigenous men and boys.
Causes of the MMIW Crisis
There are a dozen causes of MMIW. Any one of these would cause issues, but when they come together they form a perfect storm for a modern-day genocide.
History
It’s impossible to ignore the past when we are discussing the present- this is especially true for problems faced by Native American women. In 1956, the Indian Relocation Act ensured that many Indigenous people moved from reservations to more urban areas.
The act effectively ended federal funding for reservations’ hospitals, schools, and other amenities. While it didn’t directly force people to leave reservations, it made life even harder and many families had little choice but to relocate to areas where they were more likely to face job discrimination, racially-motivated violence, and other issues.
As a result of this act (alongside all the broken treaties that have been ignored since 1492) many Indigenous people adopted an almost nomadic lifestyle, travelling between tribal and state lands. This creates a problem of jurisdiction, because if a crime is committed on tribal lands it cannot be investigated by non-tribal police, and vice versa.
The full force of the history of North America focuses on Native People, many of whom are caught in a cycle of poverty that has been ongoing for generations. With poverty comes many problems: homelessness, substance abuse, crime and violence.
Stereotypes
As with many minority groups, there is no shortage of harmful stereotypes trying to diminish the humanity of Native people:
“They’re lazy”
“They do drugs/drink too much”
“They’re asking for it, they put themselves in dangerous situations”
“They’re rich and own all the casinos”
“They rely too much on government handouts”
Harmful and inaccurate perceptions of Indigenous people, especially women, mean cases where they go missing are less likely to be investigated and taken seriously by officials.
Stereotypes also make criminals more likely to believe they can get away with violence against Indigenous women and girls.
Jurisdiction
The majority of violence against Native women comes from non-Native men, but occurs on tribal lands. This creates a legal black hole when tribal police try to investigate such instances, as they have diminished authority when the perpetrator moves off of tribal land.
Federal and tribal law officials have a significant problem communicating with each other, which leads to many cases of MMIP falling through the cracks.
“A person’s relationship to a problem often reflects their framework or worldview for understanding it. While violence against Native women is committed by individuals—abusers, rapists, traffickers—it is federal colonial policies and laws that created the social setting for such crimes. While living in the same country the worldview of the colonized versus that of the colonizer are fundamentally distinct.”
The NIWRC (Statement by members Jacqueline Agtuca, Elizabeth Carr, Brenda Hill, Paula Julian, and Rose Quilt)
Lack of media coverage
In the rare cases where an MMIW case is investigated by law officials, the media is unlikely to act or spread any kind of awareness. If they do, there is often a negative slant to the story- perhaps the woman was drinking, had a history of issues, or is easy to paint as ‘unstable’ and therefore more deserving.
By making violent outcomes seem inevitable, cases of MMIW are diminished in the public eye.
Troubling MMIW Statistics
Databases and official numbers are few and far between when it comes to MMIW, but here’s what we know:
Canada
- Native women 15+ years old are 3.5x more likely to experience violence in their lives than non-Native women.
- Indigenous women represent ~3% of Canada’s population, but 10% of missing person’s cases. (justice.gc.ca)
- In 2014, Indigenous women accounted for 21% of missing persons victims. (justice.gc.ca)
- Homicides involving Indigenous women are more likely to go unsolved. Only 53% of murder cases in the NWAC’s database have been solved, (compared to 84% of all Canadian murder cases.) (NWAC)
- 17% of murders of Indigenous women occur on a street, road or highway (compared to 1% of murder occurring against non-Indigenous women in the same setting.) (justice.gc.ca)
United States
- More than 4 out of 5 Indigenous women have suffered violence at some point in their lives. (Indianlaw.org)
- In 2016 there were 5,712 reports of missing Indigenous women and girls, however the US Department of Justice’s federal missing person database only logged 116 of these cases. (National Crime Information Center)
- The murder rate for Indigenous women on reservations is 10x higher than the national average. (UIHI.org)
- Murder is the third leading cause of death for Indigenous women. (UIHI.org) Indigenous women are twice as likely to be raped and three times as likely to be murdered as their white counterparts.
- The oldest victim of MMIW was 83 years old, while the youngest was an infant under one year old. (Urban Indian Health Institute)
- Almost half of Indigenous women have been stalked in their lifetime. (Gedakina.org)
- New Mexico is one of the worst states for MMIW rates, 78 out of 506 urban cases occurring somewhere in the state. (CSVANW.org)
What does the red handprint mean for Indigenous women?
It is common to see people with red handprints over their mouths on social media and at protests for Indigenous rights. The red handprint has become a symbol that represents the MMIW movement, representing the voices silenced by decades of violence against Indigenous people, especially women.
It’s commonly used alongside the hashtag #nomorestolensisters and #mmiw in order to raise awareness for the issue.
MMIW day: May 5th
May 5th is the official MMIW Awareness Day, recognized across the US and Canada as a time to:
- Wear red, as red dresses are also symbolic of the movement
- Attend fundraisers, protests, rallies and marches
- Raise awareness online by creating and sharing informative posts
Some memorial marches are also organized on February 14th by certain activist groups.
Preventing future MMIW: Activism & Legislation
The MMIW awareness movement has been steadily growing since 2015. This is largely thanks to Indigenous women and families of victims and survivors alike. Native communities have come together to amplify their own voices and raise awareness for their Stolen Sisters.
Canada recently conducted an enquiry into their MMIW issue, creating an action plan in 2021.
There are a few examples of recent legislation for MMIP:
Doug Ducey
In 2019, Arizona’s governor Doug Ducey created a committe of 21 people to properly investigate MMIW. This is one of the first (if not the first) instances of the law acknowledging that there is a problem of violence against Indigenous women. The bill will help to investigate the causes of MMIW, as well as collect data on the scope of the problem.
The Not Invisible Act
The Not Invisible Act of 2019 is also making waves as it directly looks at ways to improve communication between tribal and federal authorities in cases of MMIP. More than this, the act will also look at:
- Decreasing instances of human trafficking on tribal lands
- Collecting and tracking data for cases of MMIP
- Developing further legislation to protect Indigenous people
Raising awareness
More needs to happen if the epidemic of MMIW is to be stopped. According to Amnesty International, there are three key factors which must occur in order to end the violence:
- A national action plan loaded with culturally-appropriate ways to prevent cases of MMIP and support survivors
- In-depth data collection from law enforcement officials, and a proper database to record cases of violence against Native people. This can inform official crime statistics and help us to track the problem.
- A national inquiry into MMIP which looks in-depth at the causes, nature of, and solution to the violence. This inquiry should also ensure the government and law enforcement officials are held accountable for their responses to crimes against Indigenous people.
Where to donate to MMIW
There are many options for people who want to lend a hand with organizations directly fighting the MMIW crisis:
In Support of Indigenous Lives (about the anthology)
As a human, I am appalled by the ongoing mistreatment of Indigenous people on a governmental and personal level. So, I decided to gather a team of writers and put together a book of writing to raise awareness for MMIW. All proceeds will be donated to the NIWRC and NWAC.
This book is coming to a shelf near you this summer. Keep an eye on my instagram for future updates.
If you are experiencing human trafficking or issues related to MMIP, do not feel alone- there are helplines to support you, like:
- StrongHearts Native Helpline: 1-844-762-8483
- National Indigenous Women’s Resource Center: 1-855-649-7299
- Coalition to Stop Violence Against Native Women: 1-505-243-9199
Or see the NIWRC MMIW toolkit for further resources.
Culture of Many Colours 