[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 [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-09981]


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  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.
                
                
                    (Presidential Sig.)

[FR Doc. 2023-09981
Filed 5-8-23; 8:45 am]
Billing code 3395-F3-P