A glance at the violence against American Indian and Alaska Natives “And Indian-hating still exists; and, no doubt, will continue to exist, so long as Indians do. – The Confidence Man: His Masquerade, Herman Melville, 1857 In a major report examining violence against Native women, Harper and Entriken (2006), citing Native women violence scholars conclude that there are two fundamental reasons that give rise to the violence: “One explanation is that the attempted destruction of Native culture has created an atmosphere in which violence directed against Native women is condoned, tolerated, or ignored. A second explanation is that the federal prohibitions that restrict tribal governments’ ability to protect their women citizens perpetuate violence against Native women.” According to a 2010 National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey (NISVS) (Rosay, 2016), 84.3 percent of American Indian or Alaska Native women reported that they had experienced violence in their lifetime compared to 71.0 percent of Non-Hispanic White Only women. The “relative risk” of violence towards Native women was 1.2 making them 20 percent more likely to have experienced violence in their lives. In regard to sexual violence, 56.1 percent of American Indian or Alaska Native women reported at some point in their past they had experienced this type violence. 49.7 percent of Non-Hispanic White Only women reported past sexual violence. Interestingly, the “relative risk” between the two samples was not significant (NS), which means there may be no difference between the two groups. What about stalking? The National Center for Victims of Crimes says stalking refers to “a course of conduct directed at a specific person that would cause a reasonable person to feel fear.” Some examples include “following you and showing up wherever you are,” “sending unwanted gifts, letters, cards, or emails,” and “driving by or hanging out at your home, school, or work.” The stalking that has occurred in the lifetime between Native women and Non-Hispanic White
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