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The NIWRC Receives the Prestigious 2019 Angie Debo Civil Libertarian Award

Oklahoma City, OK- The National Indigenous Women’s Resource Center (NIWRC) was honored to receive the 2019 Angie Debo Civil Libertarian Award from the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Oklahoma, at their Annual Meeting and reception, held at the Midwest City Library on Saturday, April 20^th, 2019.

“The ACLU of Oklahoma is honored to present the 2018 Angie Debo Civil Libertarian Award to the NIWRC in recognition of their pursuit to protect women, especially indigenous women.” Said Sarah Adams-Cornell, Choctaw, Vice President, ACLU Board of Directors. “Much like the award namesake, NIWRC’s resolute advocacy to make known and change disparities impacting indigenous people, including VAWA is a gold standard. The empowerment provided to our indigenous women through NIWRC resources and trainings can be felt throughout Indian Country.”

The NIWRC is a Native nonpartisan, nonprofit organization dedicated to reclaiming the sovereignty of Native nations and safeguarding the safety of Native women. NIWRC’s legislative reform efforts, such as the Violence Against Women Act, serve as a foundation to our work and our VAWA organizing efforts include working in close alliance with tribal leaders, tribal grassroots, and national non-Native sister organizations.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, homicide is the third leading cause of death among American Indian and Alaska Native women between 10 and 24 years of age and the fifth leading cause of death for American Indian and Alaska Native women between 25 and 34 years of age. The murder rate of Native women is more than ten times the national average in some tribal communities. Often, these disappearances or murders are connected to crimes of domestic and dating violence, sexual assault, stalking, and sex trafficking.

“This year, 2019, NIWRC is again organizing for lifesaving reforms needed under VAWA and we hope that our allies will continue to support our efforts,” said Princella RedCorn, Communications Officer for the NIWRC. “Our organizing efforts to create the changes needed are rooted in the same injustices Angie Debo wrote about in her articles and books.”

The Angie Debo Award is named in honor of the writer, historian, and civil rights advocate Angie Debo, who relentlessly pursued justice in cooperation with the ACLU of Oklahoma during the late 1960s and 1970s. It is the highest award presented by the ACLU of Oklahoma and has been presented annually since 1971 for outstanding achievement in the fight for civil rights and civil liberties.

“NIWRC is honored to receive the 2019 Angie Debo Civil Libertarian Award,” said RedCorn. “We appreciated this award as a meaningful statement of support for our organizing efforts to end violence against Native women at its roots. It is support such as this award that sends the signal that laws limiting the authority of Indian tribes to protect women must be changed.”

A founder of NIWRC, Tillie Black Bear, often said: “Who is going to advocate for the safety of Native women if not us?”