UN agent investigates epidemic of violence against Indian women in US
From the National Congress of
American Indians
CHEROKEE, N.C. - At 64 years old,
Matilda Black Bear, better known as Til
lie, refers to herself as a “classic case” in
regards to her story of domestic violence.
She was 26 years old when she
entered into a relationship that turned
violent. She knew after the first week that
she had to get out, but it took her three
years to leave.
“In the ‘70s, there were no services
for victims, let alone any laws to hold
perpetrators accountable,” recalled Black
Bear. “I went to the police and to the judges
and they didn’t know what to do with me.”
According to U.S. Department of
Justice statistics, not much has changed in
nearly 40 years. Black Bear’s story is shared
by thousands of Native women in the United
States. One out of three Native women
will be raped in her lifetime and three out
of four will be physically assaulted.
These staggering statistics were
presented, along with a plea for help, to
the United Nations special rapporteur on
violence against women, Rashida Manjoo.
She visited the Eastern Band of Cherokee
Indians here on Jan. 28-29.
Manjoo’s purpose was to meet with
Tribal leaders, advocacy organizations
and Indian women survivors to learn
more about the high rates of violence
against Indian women and what the U.S.
can do to safeguard the human rights of
Indian women.
“Young women on the reservation
live their lives in anticipation of being
raped,” said Juana Majel Dixon, first
vice president of the National Congress
of American Indians and member of the
Pauma-Yuima Band of Luiseno Indians.
“They talk about ‘how I will survive my
rape’ as opposed to not even thinking
about it. We shouldn’t have to live our
lives that way.”
Dixon says she discovered there was
not a single woman in her generation from
her area who had not been raped.
Unlike all other local communities,
Indian nations and Alaska Native villages
are legally prohibited from prosecuting
non-Indians and the Indian Civil Rights
Act limits the sentencing authority of
Tribal courts over Indian offenders com
mitting acts of sexual and domestic vio
lence on Tribal lands.
Presenters from Clan Star Inc. high
lighted for Manjoo several specific areas
that need improvement in order for sover
eign Tribal nations to increase the safety
of women.
The recommendations included
restoring Tribal criminal jurisdiction over
non-Indians, increasing the sentencing
authority of Indian Tribes, increasing fed
eral support to Indian Tribes to enhance
their response to violence against women
and creating a new funding stream that
specifically provides services to Native
survivors of domestic and sexual violence.
Advocates hope Manjoo also will
hold the U.S. accountable under inter
national human rights law, which has a
higher standard for protecting women.
“What we need in Indian country is
a transformation,” said Kirsten Matoy
Carlson, director of the Safe Women,
Strong Nations program at the Indian Law
Resource Center. “International human
rights law tells us that we can do better.
We can better provide access to justice for
Native women.”
As U.N. special rapporteur on vio
lence against women, Manjoo is required
to gather information on and formulate
recommendations for the prevention and
remedy of violations of human rights.
“The right to be safe and live free
from violence is a human right that many
in this country take for granted - but not
Native women, who are beaten and raped
at rates higher than any other population
of women in the United States,” said Terri
Henry, councilwoman for the Eastern
Band of Cherokee Indians and co-chair
of the NCAI Task Force on Violence
Against Women.
“This is a human rights crisis that
Indian Country has been aware of for
some time. We are glad that the rest of the
world is finally beginning to take notice,”
added Henry.
The Eastern Band of Cherokee
Indians (EBCI) is one of 565 federally
recognized, sovereign Indian and Alaska
Native nations in the U.S. The EBCI’s
land base, known as the Qualla Boundary,
includes 56,000 acres of land in five west
ern North Carolina counties. It’s a rural,
remote area that includes six traditional
Cherokee townships.
Apply for elk tag drawing to hunt on Tribe’s LOP lands
Volunteer for
Prevention
Program
If you are interested in volunteer
ing with the Prevention Program, here
are some specific guidelines:
The Tribal Natural Resources Department once again will offer a limited number of landowner preference (LOP) elk tags
to Tribal members for this fall’s hunting season. As a landowner, the Tribe is eligible to participate in the State’s LOP program.
Based on the number of acres the Tribe owns, we can get six additional antlerless elk tags from the State. These LOP tags are not
related to the Tribe’s Consent Decree tags we receive each year. They are based solely on the Tribe being a landowner.
There are a number of important differences between the LOP tags and the Tribe’s regular tags. These are summarized in the
table below.
Tribal Tags
•
•
•
•
•
•
Apply to be a Tribal Prevention
volunteer at Human Resources.
This will include agreeing to a
criminal background check and a
drug screen.
Attend an orientation with Preven
tion staff to learn about ethics and
program policies and procedures.
A volunteer training program will
be developed.
For those with previous problems
of alcohol/drugs, at least one year
of living a clean and sober life
style is required.
Participate in making a prevention
video/DVD.
All people to be filmed must sign
an agreement to be filmed.
The Tribal general manager and
Tribal Council must approve of
the final cut before it’s released
for public viewing.
Any question regarding this pro
cess, please contact Jenifer Metcalf,
Prevention coordinator, at jeniferm@
ctsi.nsn.us or 800-600-5599 or
541-444-9618.
-16
•
Siletz News
•
The EBCI is responsible for the safety
and protection of women within Qualla
Boundary. EBCI Tribal emergency medi
cal personnel, law enforcement services,
prosecutors, courts and services are
charged with handling domestic violence
and sexual assault cases.
The EBCI is directly responsible
for holding Indian perpetrators of such
crimes accountable. Despite these respon
sibilities for responding to violent crimes
against women, the EBCI and all other
Indian Tribes have no criminal authority
over non-Indians and cannot prosecute
non-Indians for committing crimes
against Tribal citizens on Tribal lands.
Nationally, non-Indians commit
88 percent of all violent crimes against
Indian women.
Manjoo visited the EBCI Tribal
courts, the police department and the
Cherokee hospital that provides services
to women.
Findings from her trip will be reported
to the U.N.’s Council on Human Rights
along with recommendations to the U.S.
on how to better protect women’s human
rights and stop the violence.
“We hope Ms. Manjoo will give
breath to these words and share our
struggle with the world,” said Dixon.
Manjoo’s visit was hosted by the
EBCI in partnership with NCAI, Clan Star
Inc., Indian Law Resource Center and the
Sacred Circle National Resource Center
to End Violence Against Native Women.
LOP Tags
State License Required?
No
Yes
Area to be Hunted
Anywhere within the specific
tag’s hunt boundaries
Only on Tribal land within the unit selected during that unit’s
antlerless elk season. Units available include Thompson Creek,
SW Alsea, SW Alsea Private Lands and West Siuslaw
Eligible for other State elk
tags?
Yes
No*
Give tag to another Tribal
member to hunt for you?
Yes
No
Application and Selection
Process
Apply to Tribe for Tribal
drawing
Apply to Tribe for LOP drawing; if selected apply to State
for tag (list LOP as first choice on State application)
Obtain Tag From
Tribe
State
* Note: If you are drawn for an LOP tag, you still are eligible to apply for and be drawn for a Tribal tag.
Please note that a major difference between the LOP tags and the Tribe’s regular tags is only the person drawn for the tag
can hunt that tag. The tag cannot be given to someone else to hunt for you. Therefore, only those folks serious about
hunting this hunt themselves are eligible to apply.
The drawing for the six LOP elk tags will be held at the Natural Resources Committee meeting on April 4 at 4:45 p.m. in
the Natural Resources Department Map Room.
Applications are available on the Tribal website and at the Tribal Natural Resources office in Siletz after March 1. Completed
applications are due in the Natural Resources office by 4:30 p.m. on March 25, 2011.
For more information regarding these tags and the differences between the Tribe’s regular tags and the LOP tags, contact
Natural Resources Manager Mike Kennedy at 541-444-8232 or 800-922-1399, ext. 1232.
March 2011