Recognizing Injustice, Reclaiming Voices: Establishing a Missing Persons Database for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Children in Nebraska

Indigenous people have been the victims of harsh persecution since the time of colonization; this has negatively impacted Native communities and has contributed significantly to the ongoing crisis of Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Children (MMIWC) across the United States and Canada. Under Legislative Bill 154, Richards et al. (2021) conducted an initial study to identify missing Native cases in Nebraska and in 2023, the Attorney General appointed a Missing and Murdered Indigenous People (MMIP) Liaison to help combat the number of missing Indigenous in the state. This thesis contributes to previous research by analyzing 20,049 reports from three missing persons databases for Nebraska from 2015 to 2023, including Lincoln Police Department’s missing person reports, the Nebraska State Patrol’s Missing Persons Clearinghouse, and NamUs. At the same time, population statistics are utilized to compare average populations in the state to their representation in missing person reports. This research found that Native women and children are overrepresented in two of the three missing persons databases, while Native men are overrepresented in one. Due to the high number of missing Native reports, this research also contributes to the conversation surrounding the MMIWC crisis by suggesting a list of best practices for law enforcement, government entities, tribal entities, and community outreach programs so that risk factors for such cases may be identified sooner. The results also suggest the creation of a missing person database for MMIWC cases by highlighting the large scale of missing person reports in Nebraska. Advisor: William R. Belcher