H.A.V.E.N. Update
By Cathleen Osborne-Gowey (Program Admin – Crime Victim Advocate) 918.554.2836 or COsbornegowey@estoo.net
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Program Update:
Hello all –
May is a busy month, it’s Mothers day and springtime. Did you know it’s also Missing and Murdered Indigenous Peoples Month? Did you know:
“Oklahoma has the second-highest number of Missing and Murdered Indigenous People (MMIP) cases in the United States, second only to South Dakota. The issue is a major concern, and there are numerous organizations and individuals working to address the crisis, including those from various tribes and state agencies” (Google AI).
The article below highlights MMIP, how it’s a big issue in Oklahoma, and one individual who’s working to bring awareness.
“Meet the Oklahoma woman fighting against the nation’s ‘silent epidemic’ by William Wertz
As of January 2024, Oklahoma was ranked second in the nation for missing Indigenous people, with 86 out of 840 reported cases.
This ranking is based on data from the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs).
Indigenous women in communities across the nation, but particularly in Alaska, Oklahoma and Arizona, experience violence, abductions and murders at rates far exceeding those of other groups of people. Indigenous women are five times more likely than white women to experience violence from their partners, according to research from the National Congress of American Indians, something that has been termed “a silent epidemic” in America.
Last May, advocates for missing and murdered Indigenous people (MMIP) held an event at the Oklahoma Capitol to push for increased collaboration between tribes and local, state and federal law enforcement organizations.
And in November, a House Appropriations subcommittee held a hearing on what it called “The Crisis of Missing or Murdered Indigenous Women (MMIW).”
Oklahoma’s U.S. Rep. Tom Cole, chairman of the House Appropriations Committee, spoke at this hearing, saying that Native American and Alaska Native women and girls were continuing to be “disproportionately targeted by dangerous predators.”
“Tragically, I have seen these stats firsthand in my home state of Oklahoma, which ranks Number Two on the list of the top 10 states with Native American and Alaska Native missing persons cases,” Cole said. “As an enrolled member of the Chickasaw Nation of Oklahoma and the longest serving Native American in the House of Representatives, it is a priority of mine to speak up and raise awareness on this issue. We cannot give predators a place to prey anywhere, including in Indian Country.”
LaRenda Morgan has become one of Oklahoma’s leading advocates for bringing improvement to a law enforcement effort that for decades has appeared to ignore or disregard a significant issue of public safety.
“How is it that when we lose a college student on spring break, it’s a Netflix series, and the whole nation knows her name personally?” asked Doug Burgum, recently confirmed as U.S. secretary of the interior. “And then we have the same individual tragedies that happen over and over again in Indian Country, and people aren’t even aware that it’s going on.”
Morgan, now a government relations assistant to Reggie Wassana, governor of Oklahoma’s Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes, says it was a personal tragedy that introduced her to the MMIP issue.
Morgan’s cousin, Ida Beard, a mother of four children, disappeared in summer 2015 at the age of 29. After nearly a decade, no trace of her has yet to be found”.
When we think of Missing and Murdered Indigenous People we often think of it happening in other states. Morgan is working to bring awareness that it’s happening right in our own backyard and to make change. HAVEN program is also working to bring awareness about MMIP and services we provide for victims and families
For more information, please reach out to Haven to speak with an advocate.
Haven Office Hours: 8:30 am – 4:30 pm Monday – Friday
HAVEN Does NOT provide 24- hour service. After hours please call:
StrongHearts Native Helpline https://strongheartshelpline 1-844-762-8483 (call or text) or Community Crisis Center, Miami, OK 1-800-400-0883
StrongHearts and Community Crisis Center have 24 hour service
Please call the HAVEN office during business hours for more information.
918-554-2836 or Text Line: 918.533.3070
Program Website: https://havenprogram.com/
Program Email: havenprogram@estoo.net Facebook: HAVEN Tribal Program, Twitter: @ProgramHaven, Instagram: HAVENTRIBALProgram.
