It is important to understand the connection between domestic violence, dating violence, and sexual violence and the high incidence of missing and murdered Indigenous people (MMIP) in the United States. The crisis of missing and murdered Indigenous people is not new. It is more than an epidemic – rather, it is part of the spectrum of violence experienced by Native women, men, LGBTQ+, 2Spirit and Trans & gender non-conforming relatives for centuries. This crisis of MMIP has deep roots in colonization and genocide and can be attributed to the lack of legal protections as a result of the systematic erosion of Tribal sovereignty stretching back more than five hundred years.
The “Taking Care of Us” Missing and Murdered Indigenous People episode investigates the recent formalities on the MMIP issue. The podcast features Shannon Hoshnic, Victim Advocate, of Sexual Assault Services of Northwest New Mexico in Farmington, New Mexico, and Honorable Navajo Nation Council Delegate Amber Kanazbah Crotty from Sheep Springs, New Mexico. It is produced by Northern Arizona University’s Native American Cancer Prevention Program and hosted by Eli Bigthumb (Navajo/Dine’), Kathryn Bezue (African American) and Rachel Whitman (Navajo/Dine’).