To: Board of Supervisors
From: Supervisor Natalie Arroyo
Agenda Section: Consent
Vote Requirement: Majority
SUBJECT:
title
Proclamation for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Persons Awareness Month in Humboldt County
end
RECOMMENDATION(S):
Recommendation
That the Board of Supervisors:
1. Adopt the Proclamation.
Body
STRATEGIC PLAN:
This action supports the following areas of your Board’s Strategic Plan.
Area of Focus: Safe & Healthy Communities
Strategic Plan Category: 9999 - Core Services/Other
DISCUSSION:
The Board of Supervisors would like to recognize that nationally, May is MMIP Awareness Month and May 5 is Missing and Murdered Indigenous Persons (MMIP) Awareness Day. The Board wishes to increase awareness of missing or murdered Indigenous persons, whose cases far too often go unsolved, by proclaiming May as Missing and Murdered Indigenous Persons month in Humboldt County.
Research indicates that California has the largest population of Native Americans, more than any other state in the country and Humboldt County is home to many Indigenous Tribes, including the Bear River Band of Rohnerville Rancheria, Big Lagoon Rancheria, Blue Lake Rancheria, Hoopa Valley Tribe, Karuk Tribe, Pulikla Tribe of Yurok People, Cher-Ae Heights Indian Community of the Trinidad Rancheria, Wiyot Tribe and Yurok Tribe, among others. MMIP cases often go unsolved for a number of reasons, lack of data and public awareness, a lack of funding for law enforcement and a lack of coordination among federal, state, Tribal and local law enforcement agencies that could assist in resolving cases.
Since data tracking of MMIP is scarce, the actual number of cases is unknown. However, statistics show that American Indian and Alaska Native women face murder rates 10 times higher than the national average and that cases of murdered and missing Indigenous women are seven times less likely to be solved than any other demographic.
The below links have been provided to increase public awareness on this important topic:
• The Department of Justice found rates of sexual violence for Indigenous women are approximately 2.5 times higher than White, African American, or Asian American women. Sexual Violence Against U.S. Indigenous Females and Its Consequences <https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9484449/>
• In 2020 homicide was in the top 10 leading causes of death for AI/AN females aged 1- 45." BIA.gov - Missing and Murdered Indigenous People Crisis <https://www.bia.gov/service/mmu/missing-and-murdered-indigenous-people-crisis>
• Indigenous people in the also experience higher rates of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs), putting them at increased risk for other forms of violence, such as homicide. These risk factors for violence are compounded by historical (war, loss of land, language, access to traditional ways, and cultural identity), intergenerational (child and elder abuse and neglect), and ongoing (racism and structural inequities) traumas. ’CDC Archive: CDCs National Violent Death Reporting System (NVDRS) Helps Tell the Story of Homicides of American Indian and Alaska Native People. <https://archive.cdc.gov/www_cdc_gov/media/releases/2021/p1118-violent-death.html> Note: As of 2025, the CDC no longer reports data from the NVDRS
• Listen to the Vanishing Point podcast: 6 episodes focusing on the local region, Vanishing Point, 2023 <https://upandvanished.com/vanishingpoint/>, Narrated by Celisia Stanton
SOURCE OF FUNDING:
General Fund
FINANCIAL IMPACT:
None
STAFFING IMPACT:
None
OTHER AGENCY INVOLVEMENT:
None
ALTERNATIVES TO STAFF RECOMMENDATIONS:
None
ATTACHMENTS:
Proclamation for MMIP Awareness Month
PREVIOUS ACTION/REFERRAL:
Meeting of: N/A
File No.: N/A