Seraphine Warren stepped foot in Washington, having completed her nearly 2,400-mile prayer walk from Sweetwater, Ariz., on the Navajo Nation which she began on June 15, 2022. She undertook the journey in honor of her aunt Ella Mae Begay, a Dineh (Navajo) elder who disappeared 16 months ago, and to raise awareness of the alarming numbers of missing and murdered Indigenous people, especially women.
The missing and murdered Indigenous women movement (#MMIW) has gained traction in recent years as Native American activists have criticized tribal and federal law enforcement officials for failing to aggressively investigate cases and the courts for failing to prosecute. Conflicts over jurisdiction, lack of data, and systemic racism have been cited for creating what some have called an invisible epidemic.
Warren, 41, live-streamed her arrival in the nation’s capital to some 21,000 followers on her Facebook page Trailing Ellamae and met with Interior Secretary Deb Haaland, the first Native woman to hold that position. Haaland has said working on the issue of missing and murdered women would be one of her highest priorities as interior secretary, and has formed a Missing and
Murdered Unit in the Bureau of Indian Affairs to provide additional resources and coordinate efforts among agencies.
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