Rerighting the Historical Record: Violence against Native Women and the South Dakota Coalition Against Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault

There is growing recognition that violent crime victimization is pervasive in the lives of Native1 women. Numerous scholars and activists have considered Congress’s findings that violent crimes committed against Native women are more prevalent than for all other populations in the United States. One out of every three Native women will be raped in her lifetime, three out of every four Native women will be physically assaulted, Native women are stalked at a rate more than double that of any other population, and during the period of 1979 through 1992, homicide was the thirdleading cause of death of Native females aged fifteen to thirtyfour.2 Violence against Native women is a problem of epic proportions that not only endangers the lives of individual Native women but also erodes the sovereignty of Native nations and destroys Native communities. At the opening of the Tribal Nations Conference and Interactive Discussion with Tribal Leaders in November 2009, President Barack rerighting the Historical record Violence against Native Women and the south Dakota Coalition Against Domestic Violence and sexual Assault