Presidential Document2023-09981
Missing or Murdered Indigenous Persons Awareness Day, 2023
Primary source
Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.
Published
May 9, 2023
Signed
May 4, 2023
Issuing agencies
Executive Office of the President
Full Text
<html>
<head>
<title>Federal Register, Volume 88 Issue 89 (Tuesday, May 9, 2023)</title>
</head>
<body><pre>
[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 89 (Tuesday, May 9, 2023)]
[Presidential Documents]
[Pages 29813-29814]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2023-09981]
Presidential Documents
Federal Register / Vol. 88 , No. 89 / Tuesday, May 9, 2023 /
Presidential Documents
[[Page 29813]]
Proclamation 10571 of May 4, 2023
Missing or Murdered Indigenous Persons Awareness
Day, 2023
By the President of the United States of America
A Proclamation
On Missing or Murdered Indigenous Persons Awareness
Day, we remember the many lives shattered or lost, and
commit to working with Native communities to find
justice, keep families safe, and help them heal.
Indian Country has been gripped by an epidemic of
missing or murdered Indigenous people, whose cases far
too often go unsolved. Families have been left
investigating disappearances on their own, demanding
justice for their loved ones, and grieving pieces of
their souls. Generations of activists and organizers
have pushed for accountability, safety, and change. We
need to respond with urgency and the resources needed
to stop the violence and reverse the legacy of inequity
and neglect that often drives it.
When I ran for President, I promised to work across
jurisdictions to break this cycle of violence. Under
the leadership of Secretary Deb Haaland, the Department
of the Interior created a new unit to speed up
investigations, bring families closure, and keep Native
communities safe. At our 2021 White House Tribal
Nations Summit, I signed an Executive Order that tasked
Federal agencies with investigating the causes of this
crisis, collecting better data on these overwhelmingly
underreported crimes, and developing a strategy to
combat this epidemic, which most often impacts women,
girls, LGBTQI+ people in the community, and Two-Spirit
Native Americans.
At the 2022 Summit, we built on that progress by
announcing that all United States Attorneys' Offices
operating in Indian Country would better prioritize
addressing this crisis. The Federal Bureau of
Investigation has new personnel focusing specifically
on missing and murdered Indigenous cases. The
Departments of Justice and Interior are coordinating
their efforts to more effectively investigate and
prosecute these crimes using trauma-informed and
culturally responsive approaches. The Department of
Justice established a new position devoted to ensuring
victims and their families have a voice throughout the
criminal justice process.
My Administration is helping Native American survivors
and victims' families pursue justice in Tribal courts
too. Last year, I worked with the Congress to
reauthorize and strengthen the Violence Against Women
Act--a law that I first wrote as a United States
Senator over 30 years ago to end the scourge of gender-
based violence. This time, we expanded recognition of
Tribal courts' jurisdiction over non-Native
perpetrators suspected of committing crimes of
stalking, sexual assault, child abuse, and sex
trafficking on Tribal lands. At the same time, we are
investing in shelters and rape crisis centers on Tribal
lands, housing and legal assistance for survivors, and
trauma-informed training that helps law enforcement and
courts be more responsive. We are working to address
the underlying causes of violence, from human
trafficking to longstanding economic disparities,
systemic racism, historical trauma, and the need for
services to address substance use disorders.
Our efforts are guided by Indigenous survivors and
victims' families--and by our enduring Nation-to-Nation
relationships. That is why we have convened Tribal
leaders, law enforcement, service providers, survivors,
and
[[Page 29814]]
family members of missing and murdered people to work
together to combat this epidemic and support paths to
healing. The United States is also working with the
governments of Mexico and Canada, and with Indigenous
women leaders from all three countries, to better
coordinate our response--all the while ensuring that we
uphold our solemn trust and treaty responsibilities,
strengthening our Nation-to-Nation ties.
For the thousands of families who have lost or are
still looking for a friend or loved one, I know this
day is full of purpose and pain. Know that your fight
to cast light on these injustices has already saved
lives. Our Government has a solemn obligation to ensure
that every case of a missing or murdered Indigenous
person is met with swift, effective action to finally
bring justice and healing. Together, we will get that
done.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR., President of
the United States of America, by virtue of the
authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws
of the United States, do hereby proclaim May 5, 2023,
as Missing or Murdered Indigenous Persons Awareness
Day. I call on all Americans and ask all levels of
government to support Tribal governments and Tribal
communities' efforts to increase awareness and address
the issues of missing or murdered Indigenous persons
through appropriate programs and activities.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this
fourth day of May, in the year of our Lord two thousand
twenty-three, and of the Independence of the United
States of America the two hundred and forty-seventh.
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
(Presidential Sig.)
[FR Doc. 2023-09981
Filed 5-8-23; 8:45 am]
Billing code 3395-F3-P
</pre></body>
</html>Indexed from Federal Register on May 9, 2023.
This is legal information, not legal advice. Laws vary by jurisdiction and change frequently. Always verify current law with official sources and consult a licensed attorney in your jurisdiction for advice on your specific situation.