Vigil honors Montana's missing and murdered indigenous people

According to the Justice Department, 31% of people missing in Montana last year were Indigenous, while the Indigenous population makes up less than 7% of the population. Although the majority are women, 68% of Indigenous men are likely to experience violence in their lifetime.

That's why a vigil was held Friday in downtown Billings to remember and honor both missing and murdered Indigenous men and women.

Mack Carmack, MTN News

MMIP vigil on Friday, Downtown Billings

It's an epidemic affecting reservations across Montana: missing and murdered native people.

“I would probably say that every single Native American in this country and in Canada as well has someone who has been directly affected by this – probably within their immediate family,” said Nicci Wagy, one of the vigil's organizers.

Wagy and fellow organizer Lita Pepion spent weeks collecting names of missing and murdered indigenous people to read on the lawn of the Yellowstone County Courthouse. This list contains over 140 names, including confirmed and reported cases.

One of these names is Wagy's brother.

“They stopped counting his wounds at 57, and that was nowhere near the number of times he had been stabbed,” she said.

The murder of her brother Gary Lasley Jr. in Nebraska fueled her passion for Friday's cry for help.

“That’s why I’ve been active ever since. Because if I can stop someone else from feeling that pain and that anger — it's not even anger, it's anger — I'll do everything I can,” Wagy says.

Organizers' latest initiative is a petition to convince the city of Billings to fund new accessible housing. In a barrier-free emergency accommodation there are fewer restrictions and questions when accepting residents. Organizer Lita Peppion says many Indigenous people suffer from alcoholism and drug addiction, so a low-restriction housing unit would be beneficial to their community.

“Enough of this paving stuff. We need quality. We're tired of waiting for it. We want them,” said Peppion.

Peppion says violence also severely impacts indigenous communities.

“82 percent of local Indigenous men have experienced violence during their lifetime. That's a huge, huge number. Violence creates trauma. So many of our people are traumatized and it is unhealed, untreated and unrecognized,” she said.

However, this trauma and pain was recognized by each of the guest speakers.

Wagy and Peppion organized the vigil out of the kindness of their hearts, without any organization. They plan to work until justice is served for these 140-plus names or they return home.

“A lot of people would say we've lost community, and I look around here and say 'No, we haven't,'” Peppion said.