Our Sisters

We are all Sisters on Turtle Island, the Creator made it so.

Some Sisters live in danger and seek to escape the pain of isolation, abuse, and violence.                                                

Their resolve may be self-harm, lashing out, or running away.      

Youthful Sisters may naively seek a life of adventure;

only to be coerced into criminal acts for survival.

Our Sisters are profoundly missed,

and their absence extremely saddened us. 

There must have been a disconnect,

for they did not recognize our love and readiness to help.

Before sleep, we pray to the Creator to return our sisters safely.

In the darkest of night, we whisper their names and reach out

for the warmth of their hands, with no response.

We call out their names at sunrise and in the afternoon

 as their children return home from school.

We are filled with continual angst and internalize the pain of

sadness which impacts our daily lives. 

For they are Our Sisters.

We seek to create a ‘Circle of Protection’ for our missing Sisters.

Our Brothers are essential in the completion of the ‘Circle of Protection.’

As Sisters and Brothers, we honor each of our lives with love.

Therefore, we will work to eliminate the power of those

who endanger lives of Indigenous women and girls.

For they are Our Sisters!

Suzanne L. Cross (PhD, ACSW, LMSW, LLC) is on the MMIWG Planning Committee for the Saginaw Chippewa Indian Tribe in Mt. Pleasant, Mich. She is also a member of the tribe.