WASHINGTON, D.C. – A dozen Native American tribes in Oklahoma shared in grants the U.S. Justice Department awarded recently to American Indian and Alaska Native communities.
The funds are to be used to provide services and promote justice for survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault, stalking, and trafficking.
The awards are administered through the Office on Violence Against Women and will enhance tribal justice systems, support an array of services for victims of these crimes, and provide training and technical assistance to service providers and tribal governments.
“For too long, Alaska Native and American Indian communities have endured persistent and disproportionate levels of violence,” U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland said.
One National Institute of Justice study found that more than 80% of American Indian and Alaska Native individuals have experienced violence in their lifetimes. This includes more than 56% of women and 27% of men who have experienced sexual violence, and more than 55% of women and 43% of men who have been subjected to physical violence by an intimate partner.
American Indian and Alaska Native individuals “experience unacceptably high rates of violence, which is in many ways a direct reflection of systematic injustice and institutional failures these populations face,” said Associate Attorney General Vanita Gupta. Through the recent grants the Justice Department “is strengthening our partnerships with more tribes, supporting communities in holding individuals accountable, and focusing on solutions that center survivors.”
“American Indian and Alaska Native communities know best the unique challenges they face and how best to allocate resources, strengthen prevention efforts, and provide pathways for safety, healing, and justice for survivors,” OVW Director Rosie Hidalgo said.
“Today’s grant announcements are a direct result of tribes, advocates, and survivors who have bravely shared their stories, challenges, recommendations, and leadership,” she said. “We look forward to continuing our strong partnerships with Tribes and strengthening the collaboration to advance these shared goals.”
The $13.6 million in grants awarded to Native Americans in Oklahoma included:
• A $1.5 million Special Tribal Criminal Jurisdiction Grant to the Kickapoo Tribe, based in McLoud. The funds are intended to provide support and technical assistance for planning and implementing changes in the tribe’s criminal justice system necessary to exercise special criminal jurisdiction, and for expenses incurred in exercising the jurisdiction.
• An $830,000 grant to the Chickasaw Nation, whose headquarters is in Ada. The funds are earmarked for the salary, training, travel, and supplies for tribal prosecutors who are designated as Special Assistant U.S. Attorneys to work directly with U.S. Attorney’s Offices in the investigation and prosecution of Indian Country domestic violence, sexual assault, dating violence, stalking, and sex trafficking cases.
• A $1,250,000 grant to the Ponca Tribe of Oklahoma, whose headquarters is at White Eagle near Ponca City, and a $675,000 award to the Otoe-Missouria Tribe of Oklahoma, based at Red Rock. Those funds will be used to support projects that create, maintain, and expand services for sexual assault survivors provided by the tribes, tribal organizations, and nonprofits within tribal lands.
• The Native Alliance Against Violence, Inc., in Oklahoma, received a $382,188 grant to “assist tribes in developing and promoting state, local and tribal legislation and policies that enhance best practices for responding to domestic and sexual violence.”
• Nine grants were awarded to support Oklahoma tribes “in developing strategies to respond to domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, stalking, and sex trafficking against Indian women; enhance services to Indian women victims; support survivor safety; and work in cooperation with the community to develop education and prevention strategies directed toward these crimes.”
Oklahoma recipients of those grants include the Wichita & Affiliated Tribes, of Anadarko, $1 million; the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma, in Durant, $1.1 million; the Pawnee Nation of Oklahoma, in Pawnee, $900,002; the Modoc Nation, whose tribal headquarters is in Ottawa County; $1 million; the Iowa Tribe of Oklahoma, based in Perkins, $1.2 million; the Osage Nation, based in Pawhuska, $900,000; the Delaware Tribe of Indians, based in Bartlesville, $1 million; the Shawnee Tribe, in Miami, $800,000; and the Otoe-Missouria Tribe, of Red Rock, $1,094,994.