Tribes use $1.4M to fight violence against women

Law

Thursday, September 3, 2009

The Department of Justice announced another round of grants to help tribes combat violence against women.

Tribes in California, Oklahoma and South Dakota have been awarded more than $1.4 million from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. That's in addition to the more than $14.5 million in tribal grants that were announced last week.

“American Indian and Alaska Native women are more likely to experience sexual assault and domestic violence than women from other racial or ethnic groups, which is why these funds are so vital,” said Attorney General Holder. “As the Department of Justice convenes the Tribal Nations Listening Conference and pre-sessions, these funds are just the beginning of a renewed partnership between the Department and our tribal communities to ensure the safety of every Indian woman and address tribes’ criminal justice challenges.”

The grants were distributed as follows:

The Department of Justice is awarding $331,371 to the Los Coyotes Band of Cahuilla and Cupeno Indians of California to hire a full-time Domestic Violence Advocate and a full-time domestic violence law enforcement officer under the direction of the Advisory Council. The Los Coyotes Band will also use the funds to develop and deliver culturally appropriate violence awareness programs aimed at youth, teens, and adults, develop and pass the law and order codes for domestic violence, date rape, and stalking for the Cahuilla and Santa Rosa Band of Indians, and purchase law enforcement equipment and supplies.
The Department of Justice is awarding $366,882 to the Kaw Nation of Oklahoma to assist victims of domestic violence and sexual assault by providing intervention and support services and develop a coordinated community response team through collaboration of non-profit victim services to create domestic violence protocols and policies. The Kaw Nation will also use the funds to develop response policies and procedures that address domestic violence and sexual assault, provide training to tribal law enforcement, court system, non-profit victim services and educators and conduct community presentations and a public education campaign. The Northern Oklahoma Domestic Violence Shelter is a project partner under this grant.
The Department of Justice is awarding $787,633 to the Rosebud Sioux Tribe in South Dakota to provide advocacy and supportive services to victims with avenues of safety, support groups and advocacy within the criminal justice systems, housing agencies, educational systems and the social services department. The tribe will use the funds to renovate the White Buffalo Calf Woman Society shelter to create a safe environment, to enhance the handicap accessibility of the shelter and drop-in services and provide a new roof to promote sustainability of the facility and purchase a shelter vehicle to provide transportation to victims seeking job and educational opportunities and other destinations that contribute to a survivor’s independence. The tribe will also create an education and prevention campaign addressing domestic violence, sexual assault, dating violence and stalking, implement a Domestic Violence Court and enhance the Tribal court’s ability to hold hearings on domestic violence cases and to provide security measures to ensure the safety of victims and the public.