The First Task Force For Murdered And Missing Black Women Has Just Launched
Minnesota is officially the first state in the nation to create a task force focused on missing and murdered Black women.
According to KSTP, Governor Tim Walz had a ceremonial bill signed to make it official. The task force comprises a 12-member panel that includes law enforcement, court representatives, and victim advocacy groups.
Minnesota Rep. Ruth Richardson (DFL-Mendota Heights) stated, “We are going to leave this task force with a blueprint...A blueprint for change. A blueprint to bring Black women and girls back home. A blueprint to solve their crimes and to be able to ensure that everyone gets equal access to the services that they need when they need them,” according to MadameNoire.
The FBI’s National Crime Information Center’s most recent data states over 900,000 Black girls and women went missing in 2020 alone. Insider reports this task force was inspired in part by the story of 18-year-old Brittany Clardy from St. Paul who, in 2013, was murdered and found in the trunk of her car.
The task force’s initial move is to draft policy recommendations focused on addressing gender-based and racial violence that is due to be presented by December of next year (2022).
