Native women are disproportionately impacted by sexual violence, but Nicole Matthews with the Minnesota Indian Women’s Sexual Assault Coalition says there’s no mention of tribes in a special task force’s recommendations on improving sex-assault investigations. “I certainly hope that people will be pushing for that. I know we have some strong voices in the legislature that are working on that,” she says. Matthews suspects Native American concerns were not included because of a tight timeline to issue the report before year’s end.
The panel was convened by outgoing Minnesota Attorney General Lori Swanson, who says lawmakers on both sides of the political aisle are interested in its recommendations.