Rep. Ed Markey (D-Massachusetts) and Rep. Dan Boren (D-Oklahoma) are asking the House Natural Resources Committee to hold a hearing on domestic violence in Indian Country.

Markey is the ranking Democrat on the committee and Boren is the ranking Democrat on the Subcommittee on Indian and Alaska Native Affairs. Citing a recent New York Times report, they say rates of sexual assault against American Indian and Alaska Native are far too high.

"We are extremely concerned that accountability for violent crimes in Indian Country may be decreasing as Native women continue to be victims of sexual assault at alarming rates,” Markey and Boren wrote in a letter. “We cannot stand idle in the face of this distressing news and call on your leadership to bring this issue to the national spotlight by convening oversight hearings in the near term.”

The letter was directed to Rep. Doc Hastings (R-Washington), the chairman of the committee, and Rep. Don Young (R-Alaska), the chairman of the Subcommittee on Indian and Alaska Native Affairs.

Get the Story:
Press Release: Markey, Boren Call for Hearing on High Levels of Rape in Indian Country (Rep. Markey 5/30)

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