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2020 is an extremely high-stakes election, and not only because it’s a presidential election year. Nevadans are voting on multiple state and local seats, including a large number of judges. Every race on the ballot this year represents an opportunity to stand up for survivors.
Survivors Are Affected By Government At Every Level
It can be easy to see the ways in which the federal government impacts survivors of sexual violence. Programs like PREA (Prison Rape Elimination Act) and VAWA (Violence Against Women Act) happen at the federal level.
The epidemic of violence against Indigenous women reaches back beyond the beginnings of the United States as a nation. We now recognize how sexual violence has been deployed against Indigenous communities as a tactic of genocide. In recent history, we’ve made small moves to begin addressing this violence – like increasing protections for Indigenous women in the Violence Against Women Act.
Now, following tireless activism by Indigenous communities, the federal government is taking significant action to address these issues.
In October 2020, two bills seeking to address violence against Indigenous