06-05-2025
Rally held in honor of missing and murdered Indigenous
(COLORADO SPRINGS) — Monday, May 5 marked the National Day of Awareness for missing and murdered indigenous women and men in the U.S.
Many people in Colorado are honoring those killed or still missing and say there is more work to be done. The Haseya Advocate Program in Colorado Springs said around 28% of Native American homicide cases remain unsolved in Colorado, and in Colorado Springs specifically, around 6% of cases involving indigenous people also remain unresolved.
'A lot of the stories it does bring in emotion, hearing about aunties and cousins, daughters, sons, fathers going missing or being murdered,' said Shauna Jackson, a volunteer at Haseya Advocate Program.
Haseya Advocate Program is a native woman-led organization, which helps indigenous survivors of domestic and sexual violence in the Pikes Peak Region. On Sunday, the organization held a rally in Downtown Colorado Springs to raise awareness.
'There was a lot of tears [Sunday], it was heavy and very emotional for a lot of folks,' said Monycka Snowbird, the Director of Haseya Advocacy Center.
During Sunday's rally, people held signs with photos of Native Americans who have experienced abuse.
'Almost every single one of our cases that we're tracking also experienced domestic violence or sexual assault immediately prior to being killed or going missing,' said Snowbird.
Jackson attested that she has personally been victim to the mistreatment.
'I am a survivor myself, and it's definitely something that's led me into working in this specific area with domestic violence, sexual assault, stalking, all of that, because being a survivor, it is a big emotional connection. I didn't have a voice, and I wasn't heard, and it was hard to admit to myself that I was a survivor,' said Jackson.
Colorado breaks a national trend when it comes to violence against Native American people–Haseya Advocate Program said more men are killed or go missing in our state than women, which is not typical in the U.S.
'When they started tracking this, it was always missing and murdered indigenous girls or missing murdered indigenous women, but what we're finding is that it's more men than our women or girls,' said Snowbird.
People who attended Sunday's rally said it's about more than statistics or data; it's about getting the word out, and letting people know how serious the issue is.
'They're carrying several signs because they have cousins and aunts who are all missing from different parts of their family,' said Jackson.
Advocates say you can help by speaking up if you know something, and push law enforcement to investigate cold cases involving native people.
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