Though the homicide rate for Indigenous people in Wyoming has decreased over the past five years, Native Americans in the state are still more likely to go missing or be murdered than people of any other race or ethnicity, a new report shows.
The Indigenous homicide rate in 2022 was nearly six times higher than it was for white people in Wyoming, according to the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Persons Task Force’s 2023 report, which was released in May. Though Indigenous people make up less than 3% of Wyoming’s population, they accounted for 12% of all homicides in the state last year.
Since the last statewide report was published in 2021, law enforcement created 360 missing person records for 216 Indigenous people (some people were reported missing more than once).
Those reports came from nine counties across the state, with the majority from Fremont County, where the Wind River Reservation is located. Most of these people were female and between the ages of 5 and 17 when they were reported missing, the report states. Last year, Indigenous people stayed missing for an average of eight days while white people were missing for an average of five days.
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The missing and murdered Indigenous persons movement began in 2015. The movement demands that the U.S. government acknowledge and address the high rates at which Indigenous people disappear or are killed.
In 2019, Keepers of the Fire, a University of Wyoming student group that aims to keep Native American culture alive on campus, sponsored an event to raise awareness about missing and murdered Indigenous women in Wyoming. In response to the event, Gov. Mark Gordon established Wyoming’s Missing and Murdered Indigenous Persons Task Force to collect data on the scope of the crisis and make a plan to address it.
The task force’s initial 2021 report gathered information about Indigenous people who were victims of homicide between 2000 and 2020. The report found that in those years, 21% of all homicide victims in Wyoming were Indigenous people — a rate that was eight times higher than that for white people. Only 30% of Indigenous homicide victims received newspaper coverage compared to 51% of white victims of homicide.
Wyoming has taken some steps toward addressing the crisis of missing and murdered Indigenous people in the state since the last report.
The Wyoming Division of Criminal Investigation, for instance, added a page on its website that lists missing people, making it easier to find information about them. The Bureau of Indian Affairs filled a victim assistance program coordinator position on the Wind River Indian Reservation, home to the Northern Arapaho and Eastern Shoshone tribes. UW’s Survey and Analysis Center created a community resource list to help people know what to do when someone goes missing. In February, Gov. Mark Gordon signed into law a bill to expand Wyoming’s missing person alert system.
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What’s more, community members who were interviewed for the report also said they feel that awareness in Wyoming around the issue has increased.
The Wyoming Division of Victim Services, which funded the report, contracted with former chairman of the Northern Arapaho Business Council Jordan Dresser to create a film, “Who She Is,” to document gender-based violence experienced by Indigenous people in North America. The film has screened in communities across Wyoming. In 2021, Gordon signed a proclamation making May 5th Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls Awareness Day in Wyoming, and community members in Fremont County have held annual marches to acknowledge the day.
Yet, the report acknowledges that there’s still a long road ahead in addressing the crisis of missing and murdered Indigenous people.
Problems with how data is recorded and analyzed, for example, can lead to underreporting, making it difficult to get an accurate picture of the extent of the crisis, the report states. Community members who were interviewed for the report also said that distrust in law enforcement is another challenge and asked for a law enforcement subcommittee on the task force, as well as more law enforcement accountability.
Interviewees reported jurisdictional barriers like challenges coordinating between agencies and not knowing who to call for information. A scarcity of resources to help Indigenous people from being victimized is another difficulty.
Photos: MMIP rally at Big Horn County Courthouse
MMIP rally
Elyison Kills On Top, 4, looks at a poster held by Aiyana High Wolf, 7, with a picture of Aiyana’s mother Allison High Wolf on it during an MMIP rally organized by Sovereign Bodies Institute outside of the Big Horn County Courthouse in Hardin on Monday.
MMIP rally
Jennie Parker is comforted as she cries after speaking about her granddaughter Toy Parker during an MMIP rally organized by Sovereign Bodies Institute outside of the Big Horn County Courthouse in Hardin on Monday, Feb. 24, 2020. Toy Parker was killed in 2002.
MMIP rally
A poster for Allison High Wolf hangs on a car during an MMIP rally organized by Sovereign Bodies Institute outside of the Big Horn County Courthouse in Hardin on Monday, Feb. 24, 2020.
MMIP rally
Kevin Lonebear chants “justice” during an MMIP rally organized by Sovereign Bodies Institute outside of the Big Horn County Courthouse in Hardin on Monday, Feb. 24, 2020.
MMIP rally
Lilliana Firecrow leans on her mother, Phylliss Shoulder Blade during an MMIP rally organized by Sovereign Bodies Institute outside of the Big Horn County Courthouse in Hardin on Monday, Feb. 24, 2020. Firecrow and Shoulder Blade were holding signs for LaTisha Joy Brien.
MMIP rally
Sincere Red Cherries, left, and Elijah Wallowing Jr. huddle together during an MMIP rally organized by Sovereign Bodies Institute outside of the Big Horn County Courthouse in Hardin on Monday, Feb. 24, 2020.
MMIP rally
Desi Rodriguez-Lonebear speaks during an MMIP rally organized by Sovereign Bodies Institute outside of the Big Horn County Courthouse in Hardin on Monday.
MMIP rally
Paula Castro-Stops holds hands with a family member as Samantha Broken Rope speaks about Castro-Stops’ daughter Henny Scott during an MMIP rally organized by Sovereign Bodies Institute outside of the Big Horn County Courthouse in Hardin on Monday, Feb. 24, 2020. Scott was found dead in December 2018.
MMIP rally
Rhea New Holy braids Enrielle Wallowing’s hair during an MMIP rally organized by Sovereign Bodies Institute outside of the Big Horn County Courthouse in Hardin on Monday, Feb. 24, 2020.
MMIP rally
Pat Cole hands out posters during an MMIP rally organized by Sovereign Bodies Institute outside of the Big Horn County Courthouse in Hardin on Monday, Feb. 24, 2020.
MMIP rally
Geralyn Bulltail speaks about her daughter Kaysera Stops Pretty Places during an MMIP rally organized by Sovereign Bodies Institute outside of the Big Horn County Courthouse in Hardin on Monday, Feb. 24, 2020. Stops Pretty Places was found dead in August 2019.
MMIP rally
Paula Castro-Stops hugs Samantha Broken Rope during an MMIP rally organized by Sovereign Bodies Institute outside of the Big Horn County Courthouse in Hardin on Monday, Feb. 24, 2020. Castro-Stops’ daughter Henny Scott was found dead in Dec. 2018, two weeks after having gone missing.
MMIP rally
Attendees hold signs during an MMIP rally organized by Sovereign Bodies Institute outside of the Big Horn County Courthouse in Hardin on Monday, Feb. 24, 2020.
MMIP rally
Melissa Lonebear holds a sign during an MMIP rally organized by Sovereign Bodies Institute outside of the Big Horn County Courthouse in Hardin on Monday, Feb. 24, 2020.
MMIP rally
Geralyn Bulltail puts on a red MMIW shirt during an MMIP rally organized by Sovereign Bodies Institute outside of the Big Horn County Courthouse in Hardin on Monday, Feb. 24, 2020. Bulltail’s daughter Kaysera Stops Pretty Places was found dead in August 2019.
MMIP rally
Jennie Parker is helped back to her seat after speaking about her granddaughter Toy Parker during an MMIP rally organized by Sovereign Bodies Institute outside of the Big Horn County Courthouse in Hardin on Monday. Toy Parker was killed in 2002.
MMIP rally
Jennie Parker brought a folder containing an honor role certificate and photos of her granddaughter Toy Parker to an MMIP rally organized by Sovereign Bodies Institute outside of the Big Horn County Courthouse in Hardin on Monday, Feb. 24, 2020. Toy Parker was killed in 2002.
MMIP rally
Artie Spang, right, talks to Jennie Parker about Parker’s granddaughter Toy Parker during an MMIP rally organized by Sovereign Bodies Institute outside of the Big Horn County Courthouse in Hardin on Monday, Feb. 24, 2020. Toy Parker was killed in 2002.
MMIP rally
Kort Campbell, 7, and Kevin Lonebear hand out posters during an MMIP rally organized by Sovereign Bodies Institute outside of the Big Horn County Courthouse in Hardin on Monday, Feb. 24, 2020.
MMIP rally
Friends and family members of MMIP were given the chance to speak during an MMIP rally organized by Sovereign Bodies Institute outside of the Big Horn County Courthouse in Hardin on Monday, Feb. 24, 2020.
MMIP rally
Desi Rodriguez-Lonebear speaks during an MMIP rally organized by Sovereign Bodies Institute outside of the Big Horn County Courthouse in Hardin on Monday, Feb. 24, 2020.
MMIP rally
Cheryl Horn hugs Kort Campbell, 7, during an MMIP rally organized by Sovereign Bodies Institute outside of the Big Horn County Courthouse in Hardin on Monday, Feb. 24, 2020.
MMIP rally
Yolanda Fraser speaks about her granddaughter Kaysera Stops Pretty Places during an MMIP rally organized by Sovereign Bodies Institute outside of the Big Horn County Courthouse in Hardin on Monday, Feb. 24, 2020. Stops Pretty Places was found dead in August 2019.
MMIP rally
Many attendees dress in red, the color of the MMIP movemement, during an MMIP rally organized by Sovereign Bodies Institute outside of the Big Horn County Courthouse in Hardin on Monday, Feb. 24, 2020.
MMIP rally
Annita Lucchesi speaks during an MMIP rally organized by Sovereign Bodies Institute outside of the Big Horn County Courthouse in Hardin on Monday, Feb. 24, 2020.
MMIP rally
Samantha Broken Rope speaks about her niece Henny Scott during an MMIP rally organized by Sovereign Bodies Institute outside of the Big Horn County Courthouse in Hardin on Monday, Feb. 24, 2020. Scott was found dead in December 2018.
MMIP rally
Paula Castro-Stops wipes her face as Samantha Broken Rope speaks about Castro-Stops’ daughter Henny Scott during an MMIP rally organized by Sovereign Bodies Institute outside of the Big Horn County Courthouse in Hardin on Monday, Feb. 24, 2020. Scott was found dead in December 2018.
MMIP rally
Many attendees dress in red, the color of the MMIP movemement, during an MMIP rally organized by Sovereign Bodies Institute outside of the Big Horn County Courthouse in Hardin on Monday, Feb. 24, 2020.
MMIP rally
Jennie Parker speaks about her granddaughter Toy Parker during an MMIP rally organized by Sovereign Bodies Institute outside of the Big Horn County Courthouse in Hardin on Monday, Feb. 24, 2020. Toy Parker was killed in 2002.
MMIP rally
Geralyn Bulltail cries as she speaks about her daughter Kaysera Stops Pretty Places during an MMIP rally organized by Sovereign Bodies Institute outside of the Big Horn County Courthouse in Hardin on Monday, Feb. 24, 2020. Stops Pretty Places was found dead in August 2019.
Follow Maya Shimizu Harris on Twitter @M_ShimizuHarris