3/20/2025

N. WISCONSIN - Indigenous people have made great contributions to the state of Wisconsin yet the alarming rates of violence against them remains a public health crisis. A new study shows that intimate partner violence disproportionately impacts Indigenous women more than any other ethnic or racial group in the U-S. The murder rate for Native American women and girls is up to ten times higher than the national average, according to the U-S Department of Justice, yet they account for less than one percent of the population. Desiree Tody with the Center Against Sexual and Domestic Abuse (CASDA) is a member of the Red Cliff Band of Lake Superior Chippewa in Wisconsin. She says violence against Native women is under-reported and unaddressed.

  :11 "There's jurisdictional issues that come into play as to how things are investigated, how things are tried, and there's always racism. There's less attention paid to the individuals that some of these things happen to."

Tag: The Wisconsin Department of Justice created a task force to combat violence against Native women across the state after legislation that would have addressed these issues failed to pass. There are currently no upcoming taskforce meetings listed on the newly updated D-O-J website. Poor tracking and data collection are just one of the many issues that contribute to the epidemic amongst Indigenous women. During a multistate march last month, Tody read a list of names of Indigenous people from Minnesota who had died from domestic violence. No such list currently exists for Wisconsin and Tody says she’s working on changing that. She emphasizes the great need to address the systems in place that continue to fail Native people.

  :11 "I have three daughters that I want them to grow up as strong Native women and I want them to grow up safely as strong Native women. I mean, this is their futures on the line. This is their ability to walk down a street safely."

Tag: Research shows Indigenous women also face significant barriers when seeking help after experiencing domestic violence. A survivor of domestic violence herself, Tody works with CASDA to provide resources for those affected in Bayfield and Ashland counties. Governor Evers has proposed a $20 million funding increase for domestic abuse services in his current Executive Budget.