Image via Chukchansi Gold Facebook page

A public notification aimed at combating the rising number of missing and murdered Indigenous people begins this January.

The public system — Feather Alert — will help law enforcement quickly notify the public about missing Native Americans, similar to the AMBER Alert system, which saw implementation in California in 2002.

Assemblymembers James C. Ramos (D-Highland), Joaquin Arambula (D-Fresno), and Esmeralda Soria (D-Fresno), as well as representatives from the California Highway Patrol, Department of Justice and local tribal law enforcement, were present for a nearly day-long discussion at Chukchansi Gold Resort and Casino this week to learn more information about the Feather Alert system.

The system was authorized earlier this year, passing through the state Senate in August. Ramos authored Assembly Bill 1314.

“I am gratified that the governor approved this bill to help stop the violence afflicting California’s Native American communities,” said Ramos. “The Feather Alert will aid law enforcement and families in getting the word out quickly when a Native individual is missing or endangered by alerting the public in a broad and effective manner.”

Feather Alerts will be activated by the CHP for missing Indigenous persons following the investigating law enforcement’s utilization of local and tribal resources. Local law enforcement must also determine that the person missing disappeared under suspicious circumstances.

Feather Alerts will also be activated if the missing person is in danger due to age, health, mental or physical disability and environmental weather conditions. Details relating to dangerous persons and other specific factors may also be disclosed through the Feather Alert system.

The CHP will also release available information that could assist in recovery of the missing person.

“Creating an alert or advisory system was a top recommendation from tribal leaders in May to highlight this issue,” Ramos said, adding that California ranks among the states with the most reported cases of missing and murdered Indigenous Peoples.

A report issued by the Sovereign Bodies Institute states that only 9% of murders of Indigenous women in California have been solved, with the U.S. Department of the Interior indicating that approximately 4,200 cases have been left unsolved.

“California Assembly Bill 1314, establishing the Feather Act for missing Native Americans, is the direct result of Indian Country’s call to action and our partnership with state legislators to begin to address the nationwide epidemic of missing and murdered Indigenous People,” said Picayune Rancheria of the Chukchansi Indians Chairperson Janet K. Bill. “We as tribal people do not want to be known solely as another statistic but as the human being we are – who deserve to be found, to be safe, and to be protected by our public safety systems.”

Feather Alert joins the AMBER Alert system, implemented in 2002, Blue Alert, which notifies the public of threats to police officers and the Silver Alert, which is used to assist in the safe return of elderly, developmentally or cognitively-impaired persons.

Each of these systems, including the Feather Alert system, advise the public on circumstances of the individuals disappearance, age, physical and mental health-related issues, weather and whether the individual poses a threat to the public.