Al Jazeera: Justice denied for Native women on violent crime

Wednesday, September 19, 2012  

"In the US, Native American women are facing an epidemic of sexual assault and violence. One in three reports being the victim of a rape or attempted rape and Native American women are also 10 times more likely to be murdered than other groups of women in the US. Most of the attacks are also reported to be perpetrated by a person of another race.

Why is this happening? According to advocates for Native women, it's largely due to poor policing and a failed legal system that allows offenders, who are non-Native Americans, to get away with crimes committed on reservation land. Unfortunately, this has led to many unprosecuted cases and little justice.

In this episode of The Stream, we speak to Sarah Deer, assistant professor at William Mitchell Law School; Andrea Smith, co-founder of INCITE! Women of Color Against Violence; and Rebecca St. George of the Minnesota Indian Women’s Sexual Assault Coalition. "

Get the Story:
Justice denied for Native American women (Al Jazeera 9/18)

Native Sun News: UN report cites violence against women (9/14)
Column: Update to Violence Against Women Act still in limbo (09/11)
Opinion: Sexual violence is tearing Native communities apart (9/10)
Video: Indian Law Resource Center for reauthorization of VAWA (09/06)
Sarah Deer: Protecting Indian women with our justice systems (08/30)
Opinion: Native women exploited again for political purposes (08/23)
Editorial: Prosecute non-Indian offenders in federal system (8/21)
Sen. Murray still pushing for tribal jurisdiction provision in VAWA (8/15)
Impasse continues on renewal of Violence Against Women Act (07/31)
Opinion: Senate version of VAWA helps American Indian women (7/23)
Sarah Deer: Stopping violence against women through tribal law (07/16)
Opinion: Republicans add insult to injury on VAWA reauthorization (07/09)
Senate Democrats call for inclusion of tribal provisions in VAWA (6/27)
Blog: Sexual assault at epidemic level among Native Americans (6/26)
Opinion: Race, tribal authority and Violence Against Women Act (05/29)
Tulalip Tribes vice chair shares personal story for VAWA debate (05/23)
BIA disputes Republican report on Violence Against Women Act (5/18)
The Votes: Crossing party lines on Violence Against Women Act (5/18)
Opinion: Native women deserve protection from their abusers (5/18)
Tribes slam weakened version of Violence Against Women Act (5/17)
House approves version of VAWA bill without tribal provisions (5/17)
GOP bill report questions data on crime against Indian women (5/16)