[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 87 (Friday, May 7, 2021)]
[Presidential Documents]
[Pages 24479-24481]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-09853]


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  Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 87 / Friday, May 7, 2021 / 
Presidential Documents  

[[Page 24479]]


                Proclamation 10202 of May 4, 2021

                
Missing and Murdered Indigenous Persons Awareness 
                Day, 2021

                By the President of the United States of America

                A Proclamation

                Today, thousands of unsolved cases of missing and 
                murdered Native Americans continue to cry out for 
                justice and healing. On Missing and Murdered Indigenous 
                Persons Awareness Day, we remember the Indigenous 
                people who we have lost to murder and those who remain 
                missing and commit to working with Tribal Nations to 
                ensure any instance of a missing or murdered person is 
                met with swift and effective action.

                Our failure to allocate the necessary resources and 
                muster the necessary commitment to addressing and 
                preventing this ongoing tragedy not only demeans the 
                dignity and humanity of each person who goes missing or 
                is murdered, it sends pain and shockwaves across our 
                Tribal communities. Our treaty and trust 
                responsibilities to Tribal Nations require our best 
                efforts, and our concern for the well-being of these 
                fellow citizens require us to act with urgency. To this 
                end, our Government must strengthen its support and 
                collaboration with Tribal communities.

                My Administration is fully committed to working with 
                Tribal Nations to address the disproportionately high 
                number of missing or murdered Indigenous people, as 
                well as increasing coordination to investigate and 
                resolve these cases and ensure accountability. I am 
                further committed to addressing the underlying causes 
                behind those numbers, including--among others--sexual 
                violence, human trafficking, domestic violence, violent 
                crime, systemic racism, economic disparities, and 
                substance use and addiction. Federal partnerships to 
                address the number of missing and murdered Indigenous 
                peoples will be governed by the Nation-to-Nation 
                foundation of our relationship with Tribal governments 
                and respect for Tribal sovereignty and self-
                determination. The challenges in Tribal communities are 
                best met by solutions that are informed and shaped by 
                Tribal leaders and Tribal governments.

                Tribes across the United States have long worked to 
                provide solutions for their communities. In April, the 
                Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes of the Flathead 
                Indian Reservation, the United States Attorney's Office 
                for the District of Montana, and the FBI announced the 
                Nation's first Tribal Community Response Plan, part of 
                a Department of Justice pilot project to address 
                emergent missing person cases in their community. When 
                someone goes missing, it is often an urgent and time-
                sensitive situation. The Tribal community response plan 
                lays out a blueprint for how Tribal law enforcement; 
                local, State, and Federal law enforcement; and 
                community members can respond when someone goes missing 
                from a Tribal community--resolving important issues of 
                jurisdictional overlap and gaps in order to respond 
                swiftly and effectively. Other Tribes and Native 
                villages such as the Muscogee (Creek) Nation in 
                Oklahoma, Native Village of Unalakleet in Alaska, and 
                the Bay Mills Indian Community in Michigan, are working 
                with Federal partners on their own community response 
                plans.

                My Administration has made a priority of helping to 
                solve the issues surrounding Native Americans who go 
                missing and those who are murdered across the United 
                States--including high rates of Native women and girls, 
                including transgender women and girls. We recognize 
                there is a level of

[[Page 24480]]

                mistrust of the United States Government in many Native 
                communities, stemming from a long history of broken 
                promises, oppression, and trauma. That is why we are 
                pursuing ways to build trust in our Government and the 
                systems designed to provide support to families in 
                need. We must bridge the gap for families in crisis, 
                provide necessary support services, and support 
                opportunities for healing through holistic community-
                driven approaches.

                I am committed to building on the successes of the 2013 
                reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act 
                (VAWA) by supporting the passage of the VAWA 
                Reauthorization of 2021. Among other protections, this 
                bill reaffirms inherent Tribal authority to prosecute 
                certain non-Indian offenders--extending protections 
                from domestic violence and dating violence to Native 
                American victims of sexual violence, stalking, 
                trafficking, child abuse, elder abuse, and assault 
                against law enforcement or justice personnel when 
                crimes are committed on Tribal territory. Additionally, 
                through the American Rescue Plan we provided an 
                additional $35 million in grants for Tribes to provide 
                temporary housing, assistance, and supportive services 
                to victims of domestic and dating violence, as well as 
                supplemental funding for the StrongHearts Native 
                Helpline, and additional funding for services for 
                sexual assault survivors.

                My Administration has also committed to effectively 
                implement the requirements of Savanna's Act and the Not 
                Invisible Act, legislation focused on combating the 
                issues surrounding missing or murdered Indigenous 
                persons. The Presidential Task Force on Missing and 
                Murdered American Indians and Alaska Natives continues 
                to convene the Department of Justice, the Department of 
                the Interior, and the Department of Health and Human 
                Services, to address the issues from a combined public 
                health-public safety partnership. Furthering the 
                efforts of the task force, the White House Council on 
                Native American Affairs will bring together all 
                relevant Federal agencies to work with Tribal Nations 
                on exploring additional ways to enhance prevention 
                efforts and improve access to safety and justice.

                Furthermore, informed by Tribal input, the Department 
                of the Interior recently established the Missing & 
                Murdered Unit (MMU) within the Bureau of Indian Affairs 
                Office of Justice Services to provide leadership and 
                direction for cross-departmental and interagency work 
                involving missing and murdered American Indians and 
                Alaska Natives. The MMU will help bring the weight of 
                the Federal Government to bear when investigating these 
                cases and marshal law enforcement resources across 
                Federal agencies and throughout Indian country.

                Our commitment to addressing these issues and to 
                strengthening these critical partnerships is 
                unwavering. For too long, there has been too much 
                sorrow and worry. United by our mutual investment in 
                healthy, safe communities, we will work together to 
                achieve lasting progress.

                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, 2021, 
                as Missing and 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 of the issue 
                of missing and murdered American Indians and Alaska 
                Natives through appropriate programs and activities.

[[Page 24481]]

                IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this 
                fourth day of May, in the year of our Lord two thousand 
                twenty-one, and of the Independence of the United 
                States of America the two hundred and forty-fifth.
                
                
                    (Presidential Sig.)

[FR Doc. 2021-09853
Filed 5-6-21; 8:45 am]
Billing code 3295-F1-P