The city of Tucson will launch the nation’s first task force on Missing and Murdered Native Women and Girls to consider how to address the crisis in the city, throughout Pima County, and in neighboring Tribal States.

According to the report, Tucson has the fourth-highest MMIWG rate in the nation, and Arizona has the third-highest. Urban Indian Health Institute.

“The number of disappearances and killings of indigenous women in this community is not new, but we are prioritizing it,” said Indivisible Tohono Co-Chair April Ignacio.

On May 5, community advocates, tribal leaders, and city officials gathered near downtown Tucson to recognize the importance of creating a task force for the city, county, and tribes.

“This is the least we can do and it is not enough,” said Adelita Grijalva, chairman of the Pima County Supervisory Board. “We have to let people know that there is a problem, and we have to be part of the solution that solves it.”

Pima County Supervisory Board issued a declaration At its meeting on 2 May, it called for recognition of 5 May as “a day to recognize the epidemic of missing and murdered indigenous peoples.”

During the meeting, Indivisible Tohono and community members stood in front of the board with photographs of indigenous women lost to the MMIWG crisis.

Standing before the board, Ignacio wanted to highlight how important it is for families and communities that authorities recognize the danger of the disappearance and killing of Indigenous women and girls in Tucson. Stated.

“By not acknowledging it, we perpetuate the violence that continues in our community,” she said.

City and county officials credited their efforts to the MMIWG in large part to the grassroots efforts of Indigenous women who have spearheaded efforts to raise awareness of the crisis within their communities.

Tucson City Councilman Lane Santa Cruz said, “We know that Indigenous women in our community have been at the forefront of this issue, but over the years their answers, accountability and Demands for solutions have not been addressed by city, county and state officials.” . “As the City of Tucson and Pima County, it is our turn to take swift and urgent action to address the crisis in our region.”

The task force was announced to coincide with National Awareness Day for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls, making Tucson the first municipality to establish a task force.

“Within the City of Tucson and Pima County, this task force will bring together experts from law enforcement, social services, medical care, and other related fields to coordinate efforts to prevent the disappearance and murder of Indigenous women. , we plan to develop a comprehensive strategy to respond, “girls,” said Charlene Mendoza, chief of staff to Mayor Regina Romero.

Mendoza said she understands that data are limited, inaccurate and that indigenous women are often misidentified. He hopes the task force will give city leaders ideas about the true impact of the MMIWG crisis and bring about the necessary system and policy changes to collect accurate and accurate data. said there is.

“We need this to ensure that resources and services are delivered exactly where they are needed most,” she said. “It is time to make meaningful changes to our data collection, policies, training and services.”

For Ignacio, who plays the role of State MMIWG task force established by Governor Katie Hobbs in Marchseeing cities take steps to establish local task forces is a major concern for indigenous communities.

Ignacio is Tohono Odham and has been an advocate for the MMIWG for many years within India. She said she knows she thinks more indigenous people would like to participate in some way.

“The first step is just to show up,” Ignacio said. “You can influence community leaders just by showing up and making your presence known.”

And that’s what Ignacio has done. She has responded to calls for her action against the MMIWG, including in 2019 when a bill was approved to establish the state’s first MMIWG study board.

Ignacio said the changes that are happening now can only be done through grassroots efforts, so we need to convince indigenous communities that they can make a difference just by participating.

“We don’t have to live in grief,” she added. “We can be a beacon of hope and take steps to remember these families.”

Fellow Invisible Tohono member Elaine Gregg, from Tohono O’Dum Nation, spoke during the announcement, publicly acknowledging that this type of violence is happening to Indigenous women and girls. and praised the county.

Gregg has long been an advocate for raising awareness of the MMIWG and has been instrumental in transforming Arizona with Invisible Tohono, including in 2019 when Congress passed House Bill 2570 establishing the state’s first MMIWG Commission of Inquiry. has been at the forefront of major advances.

Greg not only pays tribute to the lost Indigenous women and girls in his community, but also to the memory of his late daughter, Lia Danae Almeida, who was 7 years old when she was murdered in Aho in 2009. I raised my voice for

“What I’ve learned through pain, through silence, is that I still have a voice and we all have a voice,” Gregg said. “I found support and love by sharing my grief.”

Greg has shared his experience many times with others to help in their efforts to address the MMIWG crisis in Arizona. One of the points she emphasized was that the people responsible for what happened to her daughter were outside the tribal lands. She certainly got help and justice in her daughter’s case, but she knows it would have been different if it had happened in her hometown of Tohono O’Dum Nation.

“If you look at the victim services that our people receive on our tribal lands, you will find that they are grossly inadequate,” Gregg said. “That’s why it’s so important to speak up and ask for help.”

Anna Harper Guerrero, EMERGE Center Against Domest Executive Vice President and Chief Strategy Officer, attended the Task Force announcement. She praised her Indivisible Tohono effort at MMIWG and Greg’s courage in sharing his story.

Harper Guerrero pointed to several key factors that contributed to the MMIWG crisis, including the lack of victim services available to victims of domestic and sexual violence.

“Our under-allocation of resources has only made women and girls more obscure and facilitated the elimination of many of the women and girls we see here today,” she said. “We do not have the capacity to provide the level of support families need.”

Harper Guerrero, like many MMIWG Indigenous community advocates, noted that violence against Indigenous women is not new to these communities and is associated with domestic violence and romantic relationships.

“The number of indigenous women and girls who are missing or murdered in our communities is directly related to the unaddressed and prevalent domestic and sexual violence in our communities,” Harper Guerrero said. said Mr. “Its origins are deeply rooted in an embedded belief system that women’s bodies have little value and that the dehumanization and objectification of women and girls is acceptable.”

Harper Guerrero added that the only way to begin the healing path for Indigenous communities is to first recognize the historical trauma that is at the root of this violence.

“We know that sexual violence was and continues to be a tool used against women and girls to take this land when it was occupied,” she said. Told.

Details of the task force will be announced by the mayor’s office, and a formal vote will be held at the Tucson City Council.