Across the nation, people gathered on Tuesday to walk in remembrance of missing and murdered Indigenous people. In Nome, where people have come together to recognize MMIP Awareness Day each year since 2019, red paper bags filled the floor of Old St. Joe’s Church. Each bag had the name of a missing or murdered Indigenous person written in bold letters on both sides.
Outside, advocates took turns passing around red markers, writing phrases on signs like “No more stolen sisters” and “Justice for Kelly Hunt.”
Hunt was 19-years-old and from Shaktoolik, 125 miles east of Nome. She went missing in Anchorage in January and was found dead in late April, so her story was very much on the minds of advocates like Deilah Johnson.
“Everything is more sensitive,” Johnson said. “It's heightened, elevated emotions.”
Johnson and her tribe, the Village of Solomon, help organize Nome’s MMIP Day event each year. And in 2024, they formed a regional task force to support families of MMIP victims and collaborate with local entities on the crisis.
“I want to really focus on empowering every advocate and ally and supporter for the MMIP movement to be their own advocate,” Johnson said.
Accurate data on missing and murdered cases is hard to find, which is often attributed to inconsistent data collection, jurisdictional confusion, and racial misclassification. The national missing persons database has 329 active cases listed for missing Indigenous people in the state of Alaska, but that number is likely understated. According to data from the U.S. Department of the Interior, only a small percentage of reported cases are logged in the national database.
MMIP day events bring awareness to the crisis – and calls for more transparent and available data. Advocates also say they want to see stronger investigative efforts and better communication from law enforcement.
At the Nome event, a group of children were at the front of the march with a megaphone, leading a chant:
“What do we want?”
“No more stolen sisters.”
“When do we want it?”
“Now!”
In 2019, Nome’s first MMIP walk had just six people. On Tuesday, about 200 people walked down Front Street. They lifted signs in the air, filling the space with the names of lost loved ones.
Blaire Okpealuk wore a shirt with a picture of her sister, Florence Okpealuk, who went missing in Nome five years ago. Florence Okpealuk was 33-years-old at the time.
Okpealuk has joined the walk each of the last five years, she said, to keep her sister's story present.
“It means awareness, and it means bringing back memories. And you know, it's been a struggle for five years,” she said.
Okpealuk said she almost didn't walk today, as she’s grown more frustrated with the lack of progress in her sister’s case. And she said law enforcement hasn’t done enough to communicate with her family.
“Every year they bring out all these people, you know. These big people, these resourceful people, these MMIP investigators,” Okpealuk said. “And then I go and try to speak to them after the conference, and they're gone. And you know, just something has to be done.”
She also held a sign for Mingnuna Bobbi Jean Miller, the daughter of a friend who couldn’t be at the walk.
There's so many families out here, you know that have to go through this year after year, and nothing's being done,” Okpealuk said.
After rounding a street corner, the crowd formed a circle in the recently defrosted lawn of Anvil City Square.
Holding their red bags, they took turns reciting one name at a time.
Dozens of names were called out over the course of 15 minutes, and then some added more that weren’t on the bags. The group took a moment of silence to honor each one.
Afterward, in the church, people shared stories about those they’ve lost and the grief they’ve felt.
Shannon Klescewski works in behavioral health at Norton Sound Health Corporation. She shared words of support for the grieving friends and family.
“In MMIP cases, trauma extends far beyond one person,” Klescewski said. “When someone goes missing, families often live in a space of not knowing, holding both hope and grief at the same time. This is called ambiguous loss, and it can be incredibly heavy to carry.”
Klescewski shared ways to support someone who's been impacted by the MMIP crisis. She said in many cases, families are not believed or are judged for how they respond to the loss. She advocates for what she calls “victim-centered, trauma-supported care” for grieving friends and family.
“At the center of this work, it is a simple truth, the person who has experienced harm in their family must come first,” Klescewski said. “Their voice matters, their choice matters. Their safety — physical, emotional, emotional and cultural — comes first.”
Each of the red paper bags had a small electric candle inside. When the group adjourned, they were asked to light them and leave them outside overnight.
