Tuesday of the Fourth Week of Advent
In the U.S., the number of Native Americans per capita confined in state and federal prisons is 38% higher than the national average, according to the Bureau of Justice Statistics. The rate of confinement in local jails has been estimated to be nearly four times the national average.
As we continue to prepare our hearts for the coming joy and hope of Christmas, let us take a moment to learn, understand, and question why these statistics exist. Let us journey with the Lakota’s People Law Project and The Sentencing Project, to be “in the body” with them and move towards criminal legal reform and justice for Native American peoples and their communities.
-Meditation by Indigenous Solidarity Collective Member Jessica Lemes da Silva.
The 2022 Advent Calendar is a project of CTA's Indigenous Solidarity Collective, a working group that addresses the Catholic Church's historical and current role in colonialization. To support more projects from working groups like this one, please consider making a contribution!
Call To Action's 2022 Advent Calendar, planned and written by the Indigenous Solidarity Collective, provides 27 days of prayer and study to lead into action and solidarity with Indigenous communities. Here is today's meditation.
Call to Action: 37-38
Justice
'“37. We call upon the federal government to provide more support for Aboriginal programming in halfway houses and parole services.
38. We call upon the federal, provincial, territorial, and Aboriginal governments to commit to eliminating the overrepresentation of Aboriginal youth in custody over the next decade.”
December 20th, 2022
Further Reading
"The Unique Circumstances of Native American Juveniles Under Federal Supervision" by Brenda Donelan
"American Indians and Crime" from the Bureau of Justice Statistics
"Diversion: A Hidden Key to Combating Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Juvenile Justice," a report from The Sentencing Project
The watercolor paintings featured on this calendar were created by Duane Yazzie, an artist of Hopi and Navajo ancestry. Yazzie creates artwork that reflects his Indigenous heritage and his childhood spent in the Southwest.
