III
118th CONGRESS
2d Session
S. RES. 674
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
May 2, 2024
Mr. Daines (for himself, Mr. Tester, Ms. Murkowski, Mr. Cramer, Mr. Lankford, Mr. Ricketts, Mr. Hoeven, Mr. Moran, Mr. Schatz, Mr. Padilla, Ms. Cortez Masto, Ms. Baldwin, Ms. Smith, Ms. Cantwell, Ms. Sinema, Mr. Hickenlooper, Mrs. Murray, Ms. Butler, Mr. Luján, Ms. Rosen, Mr. Wyden, Mr. Heinrich, Mr. Bennet, Ms. Klobuchar, Ms. Hirono, Mr. Rounds, and Mr. Sullivan) submitted the following resolution; which was considered and agreed to
RESOLUTION
Designating May 5, 2024, as the National Day of Awareness for Missing and Murdered Native Women and Girls
.
Whereas American Indians and Alaska Natives are 2.5 times more likely to experience violent crimes and at least 2 times more likely to experience rape or sexual assault crimes compared to any other group of people in the United States;
Whereas, according to a study commissioned by the Department of Justice, in some Tribal communities, American Indian women face murder rates that are more than 10 times the national average murder rate;
Whereas, according to the most recently available data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, in 2017, homicide was the sixth leading cause of death for American Indian and Alaska Native females between 1 and 44 years of age;
Whereas the Hawaii State Commission on the Status of Women released reports finding that 64 percent of trafficking survivors in Hawaii identified as being Native Hawaiian;
Whereas little data exists on the number of missing American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian women in the United States;
Whereas, on July 5, 2013, Hanna Harris, a member of the Northern Cheyenne Tribe, was reported missing by her family in Lame Deer, Montana;
Whereas the body of Hanna Harris was found 5 days after she went missing;
Whereas Hanna Harris was determined to have been raped and murdered, and the individuals accused of committing those crimes were convicted;
Whereas the case of Hanna Harris is an example of many similar cases; and
Whereas Hanna Harris was born on May 5, 1992: Now, therefore, be it
That the Senate—
designates May 5, 2024, as the National Day of Awareness for Missing and Murdered Native Women and Girls
; and
calls on the people of the United States and interested groups—
to commemorate the lives of missing and murdered American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian women whose cases are documented and undocumented in public records and the media; and
to demonstrate solidarity with the families of victims in light of those tragedies.