Abuse Coalition Calls for Removal of VAWA Provisions that Discriminate Against Native American Men

PRESS RELEASE

Contact: Rebecca Stewart

Telephone: 513-479-3335

Abuse Coalition Calls for Removal of VAWA Provisions that Discriminate Against Native American Men

WASHINGTON / June 17, 2021 – The Coalition to End Domestic Violence today is calling on Senators to amend the Violence Against Women Act so it does not exclude or otherwise discriminate against American Indian men. VAWA’s Title IX, “Safety for Indian Women,” violates the Constitution’s Equal Protection Clause that states, “nor shall any State … deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.”

It is difficult to identify a sound reason for VAWA’s exclusion of Native American men.

American Indian men and women experience nearly identical levels of abuse by their intimate partners. The CDC’s National Intimate Partner and Violence Survey reports these overall lifetime abuse rates for American Indians and Alaska Natives (1):

— Male victims: 81.6%

— Female victims: 84.3%

Indian men are more likely to be the targets of psychological aggression, according to the CDC report:

— Male victims: 73.0%

— Female victims: 66.4%

In addition, nearly two-thirds of missing Native Americans are male, according to the Department of Justice. The DOJ’s National Missing and Unidentified Persons System reported 404 missing Native Americans – 250 males and 154 females — revealing a 62% sex disparity affecting men (2).

These facts are excluded from the Findings and Purposes section in Title IX of the Violence Against Women Act.

VAWA’s erasure of Indian men has real-world consequences. A recent Department of Justice publication, “Missing or Murdered Indigenous Persons: Law Enforcement & Prevention,” identifies numerous programs designed to assist Indian females. The report does not list a single program that focuses on Indian males (3).

Further accentuating the disparity, the persons served under the Family Violence Prevention and Services Act consist of 71.5% females, 21.4% children, and only 7.1% males (4).

A growing number of media accounts are critical of government programs that ignore male victims:

Voice of America News: “Are Missing and Murdered Indigenous Men in US Being Ignored?” (5)
Indian Country Today: “Movement to Highlight Missing Native Women Expands to Males” (6)
Indian Country Today: “Breaking the Silence on Violence Against Native American Men” (7)

Commentator Wendy McElroy notes that VAWA’s focus on female Indians represents a “parody of human rights in which only approved groups are recognized as victims….Only those who share the secondary characteristic of approved genitalia receive compassion.” (8)

The Coalition to End Domestic Violence calls for an end to illegal and unfair policies and practices that exclude Native Americans on the basis of sex.

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