BILLINGS - Every day someone goes missing from tribal communities across the nation, and the same rings true for Montana. Which is why the Montana Missing Indigenous Person Task Force
/ Blackfeet Community College launched mmipmt.com in fall 2020 to better connect people reporting missing persons and law enforcement.
The Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes are the second tribal nation to integrate a new Montana missing persons reporting website into their protocols when people go missing in the Flathead.
Sean Dillon is one of the primary designers of the
Speaking at an update this weekend, Dillon says the site isn’t intended to do the job of law enforcement. Instead the website and a coordinator act as a community liaison, guiding families through the steps they need to take to immediately report missing persons cases to the relevant law enforcement agencies.
anished: A Native American Epidemic.
The episode outlines the history and goals of the task force and some data to underline the need for this task force in the Treasure State.
Indigenous people make up about 7% of Montana s population, but according to a report published by the Montana Department of Justice, they account for more than a quarter of the state s missing persons reports.
Several proponents spoke up during a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on the bill last week, including Lodge Grass resident Laurie Kindness.
During her testimony, Laurie said, it is time the country and our state recognizes the magnitude of our need in establishing and maintaining a logistical database, while providing local personnel with proper training and equipment to conduct necessary security and preventative measures which could help mitigate a long ignored epidemic on our homelands. Â