Serving five federally recognized Tribes within Kansas, and multiple urban areas with significant Tribal populations. - The Midwest Native Coalition for Justice and Peace is a dual Tribal sexual assault and domestic violence coalition serving the Tribal communities of Kansas. Sexual Violence in Tribal communities is one of the most pressing concerns of our time. Nationally, more than four in five American Indian and Alaska Native women and men have experienced violence in their lifetime. According to the National Institute of Justice (NIJ), American Indians and Alaska Natives are 2.5 times as likely to experience violent crimes and at least 2 times more likely to experience rape or sexual assault crimes compared to all other races. More than 4 in 5 American Indian and Alaska Native women, or 84.3 percent, have experienced violence in their lifetime. Additionally, more than four in five American Indian and Alaska Native men (81.6 percent) have experienced violence in their lifetime (NIJ). In 2022, there were 1,225 rape incidents, and 1,268 offenses reported in Kansas by 327 law enforcement agencies that submitted National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS) data and covers 88% of the total population. Only one Kansas Tribal Nation submitted numbers pertaining to sexual violence. The Prairie Band Potawatomi Tribal Police Department arrested 11 people and charged 9 in 2022 (Kansas.gov). It is crucial that we recognize sexual violence as part of the continuum of violence against Indigenous peoples, and that it is interwoven with colonization, intimate partner violence, missing and murdered Indigenous people (MMIP), trafficking and extractive industries. Our cultures are centered around the value of respect and the sacredness of women and children. Historically, sexual violence in our communities was extremely rare because violent acts were punished quickly and severely. Today, in some counties around the U.S., Native women face murder rates more than 10 times the national average (Boston Review 2022). Tragically, the success and capacity for American Indian communities have been severely hampered by the systemic legacy of colonization and forced assimilation that have created an environment wherein American Indians and Alaska Natives (AI/AN) are more likely to experience disparate social, economic, and life conditions. For example, American Indians experience higher rates of suicidality, cardiovascular disease, cancer, diabetes, and depressed mortality. These occurrences contribute to the average life expectancy of American Indians and Alaska Natives being roughly 4.4 years less than the US all races population (Indian Health Service 2016). Lower life expectancy among American Indians is not an isolated occurrence but rather is indicative of generally negative trends impacting American Indian communities. The Midwest Native Coalition for Justice and Peace will be creating an Indigenous Men and Boys as Allies program to address and support the younger male members of Tribal communities in Kansas. This program will provide education and understandings that will develop healthy, productive, nonviolent men. The program will offer mentoring for young boys in schools and nearby communities to ensure their growth leans towards being responsible allies to women. Positive program outcomes are important as they have the potential for enhanced social, political, and economic success, not only for the American Indian individuals but also for their tribal nations and communities. For many tribal communities, success is seen as a collective, shared, iterative, and interdependent among the nation and its members.
