San Diego tribes receive $2M initiative to find missing Indigenous people

Forrest Boren Jr. disappeared in 2020, without a trace. His close family has no idea where he is or what could have happened to him. 

“We have no idea. We don’t know what happened to him. We’ve had no answers,” said Veronica Cleland,  his cousin.

Boren is Indigenous and one victim of a crisis: high rates of violence, including murder and disappearances, that disproportionately affect Native American communities. 

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaska Native women experienced the second-highest rate of homicide among victims in 2020. In 2020, homicide was in the top 10 causes of death for among Native and Indigenous women aged 1-45.

“Unfortunately, Indigenous women are at significantly more risk of violence with many cases going unreported, or when they are, remain unsolved,” said Angela Elliot-Santos, Chairwoman of the Manzanita Band of the Kumeyaay Nation.

To try to stem the violence, a coalition of four San Diego County tribes and the San Diego Harbor Police Foundation have just received a $2 million, three-year grant, awarded by the California Board of State and Community Corrections. The funding aims to provide vital resources to address these issues. The grant funding will support the hosting of an annual summit, the launching of a rigorous public awareness campaign that includes a digital resource center for networking and support, it will provide training to fight human trafficking, and to bolster relations with law enforcement agencies.

“The crisis of missing and murdered Indigenous peoples has been an ongoing epidemic impacting Native Americans,” said Erica M. Pinto, Chairwoman of the Jamul Indian Village of California.

The grant recipients are tribal communities such as the Jamul Indian village of California, the Manzanita Band of the Kumeyaay Nation, the San Pasqual Band of Mission Indians, and the Sycuan Band of the Kumeyaay Nation. Joining them are the San Diego Harbor Police Foundation, known for its work fighting human trafficking.

With the financial aid provided by the Board of State and Community Corrections, these organizations hope to make significant strides in protecting and serving their communities more effectively.