By: Luis Castilla and Alex Gryciuk
A sea of red dresses filled the quad early Tuesday in an event aimed to bring awareness to the missing and murdered Indigenous people.
Beating drums, billowing red dresses and informational placards — a vivid event educated students on Murdered and Missing Indigenous Relatives (MMIR) Tuesday morning.
The Bureau of Indian Affairs estimates that as of this year, 4,200 unsolved indigenous missing and murder cases are still pending. Representing each victim, flags were planted along the quad walkway where the event was hosted.
“There’s still so many missing and murdered indigenous people that their cases go uncompleted,” Assistant Director for the Latinx Resource Center Alondra Enríquez said. “There is no justice.”
In solidarity, students painted their hands with red paint and marked black bandanas with their handprints; symbolizing the MMIR movement and pending justice for those affected.
Organizers such as Enríquez encouraged that bandanas be worn for National Day of Awareness for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women on May 5.
Participating student Lili Barajas said that Tuesday’s event spread awareness while incorporating non-Indigenous people willing to make positive changes in their communities.
“You don’t have to be Indigenous to understand that this is a big issue,” Barajas said. “It makes me think about what I can do in my position of privilege to amplify that.”
To advocate more inclusively, language for the MMIR campaign changed to be more inclusive as the word “women” has been swapped in favor of “relatives.”
“Sometimes it’s also two-spirit people, it’s also males, it’s also children [who are taken or murdered],” Enríquez said. “It’s happening to our indigenous community in general.”
Student Giselle Vega reiterated the importance of awareness and understanding of indigenous peoples in the community.
“We hear land acknowledgments all the time, but it’s important to really understand where those are coming from and the community that is around us,” Vega said.
The event was hosted as a joint effort by the Women’s Gender and Equity Center, the Latinx Resource Center, the American Indian Student Council Association and Beach Pride Events.
For more information about the MMIR movement, visit MMIW website or the hosts’ websites.