Washington, D.C. – Eastern Washington Congresswoman Cathy McMorris Rodgers (WA-05) and Congressman Dan Newhouse (WA-04) today introduced H. Res. 353, a bipartisan resolution to designate May 5, 2023 as the National Day of Awareness for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls.

“Too many women in America find themselves living in fear of becoming a victim of violence and predatory behavior. This is especially true in Washington State, where Native American women are murdered or go missing at the second-highest rate in the country,” said Rodgers. “This is a statistic we should be doing everything in our power to change for the tribes in our Eastern Washington community. I’m proud to help lead this resolution to stand with the families of every victim and reaffirm our commitment to ending this nationwide crisis before another innocent life is lost.”

The resolution demonstrates the lawmakers’ solidarity with the families and loved ones of missing and murdered indigenous women, and it calls on the people of the United States to commemorate the lives of American Indian and Alaska Native women whose cases are documented and undocumented in public records and the media.

“Indigenous women and girls living on reservations experience murder rates of more than 10 times the national average, and more than 4 out of 5 Indigenous women have experienced violence. These rates are unacceptable,” said Newhouse. “We must do more to ensure these crimes are solved and no longer under-reported or under-investigated. Designating May 5th as National Day of Awareness for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls will help shine a light on these heartbreaking tragedies and serve as a reminder to Congress that we must continue to support our Indigenous communities as we work to bring them the justice they deserve.” 

Rodgers and Newhouse were joined in introducing the resolution by 35 of their colleagues on both sides of the aisle. You can view the full list of cosponsors here.

The resolution is also supported by the Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation, National Congress of American Indians (NCAI), Midwest Alliance of Sovereign Tribes, Yakama Nation, Seattle Indian Health Board, Urban Indian Health Institute, National Indigenous Women’s Resource Center, and Muscogee (Creek) Nation.

CLICK HERE for the full text of the resolution.

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