The Pima County Supervisory Board spent time at its Tuesday morning meeting discussing ways to combat violence against indigenous women and girls.

County Superintendent Adelita Grijalva read a statement declaring May 5 “the epidemic awareness day for missing and murdered indigenous peoples.”

“Pima County is working with the federal government, the State of Arizona and other jurisdictions to raise awareness of missing persons and slain Native Americans, and an immediate and coordinated response is needed to address this crisis. I decided that,” she said.

According to the U.S. Department of the Interior’s Department of Indian Affairs, Native American murder, rape, and violent crime rates are all higher than the national average, and Native American women make up a significant portion of the missing and murdered across the country. It is said that there is

In 2017, a study by the Urban Indian Health Institute, a division of the Seattle Indian Health Commission, found that Tucson ranked fourth in the nation for disappearances and murders of Native women. Announced.

Pima County’s declaration follows the U.S. Senate, which declared May 5 as National Awareness Day in 2018.

April Ignacio, co-founder of community-based group Indivisible Tohono, said she appreciates the county’s awareness of the problem, but said the declaration is the bare minimum.

“We want Tucson to acknowledge that it ultimately bears some responsibility by acknowledging, because denial perpetuates the violence that continues in our community,” Ignacio said. said.