Police Violence Disproportionately Hits Native Americans on Reservations

0:00It's April 8th, Vancouver news today starts now, AI powered and ready. I'm Corey with the story. A new study drops some heavy truth. Fatal police violence against indigenous folks in the U.S. hits hardest right on and around reservations. Researchers crunch data from the Census Bureau and police violence trackers, fighting 203 American Indian or Alaska Native people, killed by cops from 2013 through 2024. It's way more concentrated there than anywhere else. They point to over-policing and racial profiling on tribal lands mixed with deep poverty and underfunding in Native communities as the big drivers. This is the first big look at exactly where these killings happen, spotlighting how place and race crank up the risks. Indigenous people already face some of the worst rates. One in 1800 Native men die from police violence. Even when you factor in population density or rural spots, folks near reservations are multiple times more likely to get killed by cops.

1:00It's a top cause of early death in those areas. Digging deeper, researchers found no reason listed for nearly 20% of stops leading to Native deaths near reservations compared to just 11% farther away, overlapping police jurisdictions mean constant harassment and surveillance for tribal members. Leaders like researcher Roca Beardow are pushing for real change, ditch over relying on body cams or bias training and invest in indigenous lead. Programs for healing, wellness, and tackling poverty head on to cut these deaths for good.