Navajo Nation Council to host domestic violence awareness march, Fall Session to honor Indigenous Women
News Release
24th Navajo Nation Council
The 24th Navajo Nation Council to host the annual ‘Break the Silence’ domestic violence awareness march on Monday, October 18, before the start of the 2021 Fall Session at the Navajo Nation Council Chambers in Window Rock, Ariz.
The general public is invited to walk from the Navajo Nation Museum to the Council Chambers starting at 8:00 a.m. A press conference will be hosted by Madam Chair Amber Kanazbah Crotty following the march.
The fall session will begin at 10:00 a.m. and feature days of awareness to prevent domestic violence, bullying, and breast cancer while honoring boarding school survivors and the missing and murdered Diné relatives across the country.
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“Our Navajo women are plagued by domestic violence and in response, there continues to be a lack of support from the Navajo government to meet the growing needs of our families,” said Council Delegate Amber Kanazbah Crotty (Cove, Toadlena/Two Grey Hills, Red Valley, Tsé'ałnáoozt'i'í, Sheepsprings, Beclabito, Gad'ii'áhí/Tó Kǫ'í). “Our women are powerful beings and our voices must be heard. This march is to break the silence of the victims and to uplift the voices of the survivors as we heal together. We ask for the Navajo people to wear purple on Monday and to walk with us to our capital.”
In September, the Diné Sáanii for Justice organization joined Madam Chair Eugenia Charles-Newton (Shiprock) and Madam Chair Amber Kanazbah Crotty for a march to the Council Chambers to speak on the injustices women on the Navajo Nation face.
“Every family in some way has been affected by domestic violence, systemic racism, and some form of injustice,” said Speaker Seth Damon (Bááháálí, Chichiltah, Manuelito, Tsé Łichíí’, Rock Springs, Tsayatoh) “We support this march to end domestic violence and to bring awareness to the stories of survivors. Accountability at all levels is important for families to heal. Our fall session is an opportunity for K’é to bring our people together.”
According to the United States Justice Department, Indigenous women are murdered at a rate 10 times higher than the national average while more than 4 out of 5 Indigenous women have experienced violence. Most concerning is that more than 56 percent of Indigenous women experience sexual violence. This is a growing epidemic that must end.
Madam Chair Amber Kanazbah Crotty leads the Missing and Murdered Diné Relatives task force that is developing a framework for a proposed MMDR data institute and the development of a missing persons community action tool kit to empower communities. She is a renowned advocate for Indigenous women, the elderly, young people, and the LGBTQ2S community.
(Image: 24th Navajo Nation Council)
