[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 168 (Monday, September 27, 2021)]
[Senate]
[Page S6710]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       GABBY PETITO AND FEMICIDE

  Mr. SULLIVAN. Madam President, the tragic story of 22-year-old Gabby 
Petito, whose body was recently found at the Grand Teton National Park 
in Wyoming, has captured the attention of our Nation. It is an awful 
story that is still playing out. We pray for her parents and her loved 
ones, and we hope that they soon will receive justice.
  As we watch the story unfold, we empathize with her family and her 
friends, and we mourn with them, and we think about how this horrible 
crime hurts all of them, their neighbors, our fellow citizens, the 
result of such a brutal murder. We think of our daughters and think of 
the daughters of others, all of our Nation's daughters. And all of this 
reminds some of us of another terrible tragedy in America, and it is 
this: Native and indigenous women in America are murdered and sexually 
assaulted at rates as high as 10 times the national average. Think 
about that. Horrendous.
  The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has reported that 
murder is the third leading cause of death among American Indian and 
Alaska Native women. However, this issue rarely, if ever, receives much 
coverage or awareness. But awareness often results in additional 
resources--something that has unfortunately been lacking in our 
criminal justice system on this issue, the issue of missing and 
murdered indigenous women.
  According to the FBI's National Crime Information Center, there are 
roughly 1,500 unsolved cases of missing and murdered indigenous women 
in America--1,500. Alaska has about 300 of these unsolved cases. 
Experts think there are many more such cases that don't make it into 
the Federal database.
  There has been some progress. Under the previous administration, the 
Assistant Secretary of the Interior for Indian Affairs, Tara Sweeney, 
who did such a great job, began an initiative throughout the Federal 
Government called Operation Lady Justice, the whole point of which was 
to bring light to this horrible issue of missing and murdered 
indigenous women, to bring justice and hope and closure to their 
families. Operation Lady Justice, the task force, has opened up 
numerous offices across America, including one in Alaska. Last year, we 
in a bipartisan way here in the Senate passed Savanna's Act and the Not 
Invisible Act to address the crisis of missing, murdered, and 
trafficked indigenous women in our country. Progress is being made, but 
we need to continue to keep this issue front and center.
  As we pray for the family of Gabby Petito, we also offer our thoughts 
and prayers to the families of these missing and murdered indigenous 
Americans and commit to continue to focus on all of these issues to 
make our country a better place.
  I yield the floor.

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