Jennifer Brown plays the drum while Jarrell Williams dances at an MMIP march on the Capitol steps in Juneau on May 5, 2024. (Photo by Claire Stremple/Alaska Beacon)
Dozens of people wore red and stood in the rain on the Capitol steps in Juneau on Sunday to mark Missing and Murdered Indigenous People’s Day of Awareness. Some had red handprints across their mouths, others carried banners and drums. Mothers and caretakers wrapped Chilkat designed blankets around the shoulders of their young children.
Amid an ongoing crisis of missing and murdered Indigenous people, the crowd honored lost relatives and community members — and called on state and tribal governments, as well as community members on an individual level, for change. Legislation that would support an increased MMIP response in the state must be approved by the House before it becomes law.
Jennifer Brown has organized the event for the last four years with support from the Central Council of Tlingit and Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska.