Verizon has partnered with NIWRC to raise awareness and help end violence against Native youth by empowering them to redefine Native Love. Those of us in Native communities often hear jokes about “Indian loving” as waking up with a hickey and black eye- that’s not love, that’s dating violence. Our NativeLove project encourages Native youth to think about what Native Love really is, so we can create change in our thinking and restore safety to our communities by restoring our traditional ways of loving, characterized by respect, honor, kindness, family and compassion.
Our NativeLove project includes a youth video/photo challenge, posters, social media campaigns, FAQs, and teen resources and toolkits. These are offered to support and inform youth and educators about healthy relationship and to encourage dialogue in Native communities.
For technical assistance or program information for Native youth, contact NIWRC here.
A special thanks to Verizon Hopeline for funding our NativeLove Youth project and for their ongoing support in promoting healthy relationships for Native youth.
We also want to thank the Indian Law Resource Center and Buffalo Nickel Creative for helping to develop the NativeLove videos.
