This presentation will help attendees understand the role of drugs and alcohol in the abduction and trafficking of missing and murdered Native Americans. Overall, 1.5 million Native American women have experienced violence in their lifetime. Indigenous people in the United States have rates of murder, rape, and violent crime higher than any other group. Indigenous women make up a significant portion of missing, murdered, and trafficked individuals. In many cases, alcohol and drug misuse, or the deliberate use of incapacitating substances by traffickers to aid abduction and compliance with abusers. Attendees will learn to recognize signs of trafficking, the prevalence of trafficking among missing and murdered indigenous persons in the United States and Canada, the identity and methods of traffickers, the role of substance misuse, and trauma-informed counseling strategies to aid survivors in recovery.
Trigger Warning: This presentation contains information (written, spoken, or visual) that may be triggering or (re)traumatizing to attendees.
Mac Morrison is a licensed Clinical Mental Health Counselor in New Mexico. In her work over the past 20 years, Mac has done trauma-informed counseling with indigenous trafficking survivors. She has worked extensively with persons of the 23 recognized tribal nations in the state and also persons from many tribal nations in North America.