The First Annual Red Dress Powwow was held on Friday, May 6 to bring awareness to Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls and Two-Spirit People (MMIWG2S). The evening event was held at the Boys and Girls Club William N. Pennington Facility in west Reno the day after a solidarity walk in Nixon.
The red handprint symbol and Red Dress Powwow are part of an effort to raise awareness to the high rate of murders, disappearances and violence against native women and girls.
Between dances speakers discussed local issues like the unsolved death of Anna Marie Scott. Scott’s body was discovered Feb. 3 in a burning vehicle on the I-580 Galena Creek Bridge. She was pregnant at the time of her death.
Washoe County Sheriff’s Office ruled Scott’s death a homicide and is asking for the public’s help.
Other speakers spoke out against the planned Thacker Pass lithium mine raising environmental, religious and crime concerns. The mine, opponents said, will disrupt eagles nesting, use a large quantity of water during a statewide drought and pollute the environment.
Advocates also raised concerns over what are known as “man camps,” temporary living areas for men who work on the mine. These camps have historically brought violence into native communities, especially against women. Thacker Pass is located over 60 miles north of Winnemucca.
