'We stand in solidarity': Montana State film marks MMIP awareness day

On the National Day of Awareness for Missing and Murdered Indigenous People, Montana State University’s American Indian Council released a short film aimed at bringing attention to the crisis and honoring those impacted.

Filmed in January, the AIC partnered with Montana PBS and the MSU men’s and women’s basketball teams to produce the minute-and-a-half video. It features a group of students holding signs bearing the names and photos of missing and murdered Indigenous people from across the state, while two dancers perform in traditional powwow styles at the center of the circle.

The piece closes with the message of “no more violence.”

“We stand in solidarity with the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Peoples Movement,” the AIC wrote in a Facebook post on May 5. “Respectfully, with honor, we hope to bring healing and voices to our relatives and their loved ones.”

May 5 was introduced as the National Day of Awareness for Missing and Murdered Indigenous People in 2017 by Montana U.S. Sens. Steve Daines and Jon Tester. The date honors the birthday of Hanna Harris, a 21-year-old who was killed on the Northern Cheyenne Reservation in 2013, and whose death became a catalyst for awareness and reform efforts across the state.

In 2020, the day of awareness became national through a presidential proclamation signed by President Trump.

According to data from the Montana Department of Health and Human Services, the homicide rate for Indigenous people is nearly five times higher than white people in Montana. Though Indigenous people comprise roughly 6.5% of the state’s population, they represent one-quarter of the missing people listed in the state database.

Those disparities are compounded by jurisdictional gaps, where tribal police often lack authority to prosecute non-Native suspects and must defer to federal or state agencies, creating delays and, in some cases, stalled investigations.

In Montana, lawmakers and state officials have taken steps in recent years to address the crisis, including the creation of a Missing Indigenous Persons Task Force within the Montana Department of Justice and the launch of a statewide database aimed at improving coordination and tracking of cases.

Last April, as part of the Justice Department’s Operation Not Forgotten initiative, the Federal Bureau of Investigation expanded its presence in Billings, a move officials say will allow agents to respond quicker, build closer relationships with tribal communities and devote more sustained attention to the crisis.

As part of that initiative, the FBI opened a field office in Billings in September.