On April 20, Washington state Gov. Jay Inslee signed into law House Bill 1177 that establishes a cold case unit specifically for missing and murdered Indigenous women and people in the state.
“This legislation will ensure that Indigenous victims of crime receive robust, thorough investigations, and potential prosecution,” Inslee said. Read More
Public schools with Native American-themed mascots and logos would need to find new team names under a proposal that drew supportive testimony to the Washington Legislature on Friday. The pending phase-out bill hews closely to an earlier, hard-fought policy in Oregon to change names and mascots. Read More
Leaders of seven Northwest tribes testified this week in favor of replacing a statue of Oregon Trail pioneer and missionary Marcus Whitman in the U.S. Capitol. A proposal pending in the Washington Legislature would install a statue of the late Native rights activist Billy Frank, Jr. in Whitman's place of honor.Read More
A bill in the Washington Senate seeks to improve voting rights for Native Americans. The Native American Voting Rights Act is sponsored by John McCoy, the only tribal member in the state Senate.Read More