Amnesty report on violence against Native women

Tuesday, April 24, 2007  

Amnesty International is releasing a 113-page report today on "shocking" rates of sexual violence against Native women.

"Maze of Injustice: The failure to protect Indigenous women from sexual violence in the USA" focuses on three areas: Oklahoma, Alaska and the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation in North and South Dakota. The report says the federal government's system of jurisdiction in Indian Country puts Native women at risk of sexual assault and rape.

"The high levels of sexual violence experienced by Indigenous women in the USA are compounded by failures at every level of the justice system. Amnesty International stands in solidarity with Indigenous women's demands that the United States Government provide them the protection and justice they deserve," said Kate Gilmore, Executive Deputy Secretary General of Amnesty International.

The report is accompanied by an online discussion at 2pm today with Sarah Deer, a member of the Muscogee Creek Nation. You can ask questions at http://www.amnestyusa.org/askamnesty/live/display.php?topic=82

Amnesty is also hosting a panel discussion at 6pm this evening. The event takes place at George Washington University in Washington, D.C. [More Info}.

According to government statistics, Native women are 2.5 times more likely to be victimized by their partners than any other racial or ethnic group. More than one in three Native women will be raped in their lifetimes.

Get the Story:
U.S. Authorities Fail to Protect Native American and Alaska Native Women From Shocking Rates of Rape, Reports Amnesty International (Amnesty USA 4/24)

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