This story was originally pushed by . It's republished here with permission.
The public won鈥檛 be allowed to make comments at a state-run meeting this week about a crisis of missing and murdered Indigenous people.
That continues a pattern of shutting out the community, advocates say.
The Indian Affairs Department began hosting meetings early this year to update the public after Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham鈥檚 administration was criticized for disbanding a task force focused on the crisis.
Some advocates say the three previous meetings haven鈥檛 allowed for back-and-forth between officials and people attending. And they want a change.
But it appears that change won鈥檛 happen at the next meeting, scheduled for Tuesday.
鈥淣o public comment at this meeting, however we intend to hold at least two listening sessions at a later date,鈥� department spokesman Aaron Lopez wrote in an email.
A public comment period wasn鈥檛 included on the agenda for a meeting in July, either, but it was allowed during that meeting.
A posted to the state agency鈥檚 website last week that announced this week鈥檚 meeting suggests people can request in advance to speak: 鈥淧lease note due to zoom settings if you would like to make a public comment or questions relevant to the agenda, please reach out to Shaniya.Decker@iad.nm.gov prior (sic) the meeting.鈥�
At past meetings, community members haven鈥檛 been able to ask agency officials questions, said Darlene Gomez, an attorney who represents affected Indigenous families. And those attending virtually weren鈥檛 able to see each other.
鈥淭his does not seem to be a community based meeting but a meeting that is very controlled by [the Indian Affairs Department],鈥� she replied by email Tuesday to an announcement email from a department staffer.
Gomez said as of Friday morning she had not received a response.
At least five other advocates in the email thread, which Gomez shared with New Mexico In Depth, agreed with her.
鈥淔or many years we were told to be silent and not talk about it,鈥� a person wrote in the thread. 鈥淣ow that we have formed a strong UNITY of families, advocates, community we are being muted/censored/filtered.鈥�
Chastity Sandoval, another advocate, wrote that she has stopped attending because of the issues Gomez raised.
鈥淭here is a vast disconnect and no communication; there needs to be a connection for the community to have a place to ask questions or share what they need,鈥� Sandoval wrote.
Some mentioned the task force, which met monthly before being shuttered.
鈥淭he monthly Zoom meetings were productive and the members of the group shared ideas and it felt like progress was being made. I don鈥檛 feel that way now,鈥� wrote a person who works for a national nonprofit.
Scheduled for Tuesday are presentations from the Indian Affairs Department, the state justice and public safety departments and the FBI.
Indian Affairs Department MMIP meeting:
10 am on Tuesday, Oct. 15
and in-person
Wendell Chino Building, second floor
1220 S. St. Francis Drive, Santa Fe, NM
