Sonlatsa Jim, NDCFS Deputy Director
WINDOW ROCK – The Navajo Division for Children and Family Services (NDCFS) acknowledged the National Day of Awareness for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Relatives by providing education on the issue at the Missing and Murdered Diné Relatives Symposium on May 4-5, 2026.
The National Day of Awareness is held annually on May 5 to honor those who have been lost and to raise awareness on the issue.
Sonlatsa Jim, NDCFS Deputy Director, presented on the Diné Action Plan (DAP) at the symposium on May 4, 2026, and at the Zachariah J. Shorty 5th Annual May 5th National Day of Awareness in Farmington, N.M., on May 5, 2026.
The DAP is the Navajo Nation’s road map to address the four modern-day monsters of suicide, violence, substance abuse, and missing and murdered Diné relatives by drawing upon the strengths of traditional Navajo teachings and utilizing the Diné planning model of nitsáhákees, nahat’á, iiná and siihasin.
The DAP is intentionally rooted in Navajo culture, Jim said. “What was decided was let’s go back to our Navajo culture, let’s go back to our Navajo teachings,” she said.
She invited participants to get involved, particularly through the task forces that target each of the four modern-day monsters. Jim noted that the modern-day monsters, or nayéé’, are interrelated with each affecting the others, which makes it important to create partnerships.
“The Diné Action Plan was created so we could take down siloes, start bringing partners, organizations, relatives, community members, volunteers, anyone who wants to help, to come together and implement the Diné Action Plan,” Jim said. “We know it took many, many generations to bring these nayéé’, these modern-day monsters to our communities, our families and it’s going to take many, many years to reverse that. We know that we will continue to do this work until we no longer have these modern-day monsters impacting us.”
President Buu Nygren
Council Delegate Amber Crotty
President Buu Nygren also noted that the issues of violence, substance abuse, suicide, and missing and murdered Diné relatives are interconnected and are grown from trauma, poverty and lack of access to care.
He said that the loss of relatives leaves a hole in families. “These are not distant stories. These are our relatives who live in our communities. We carry their photos, say their names, and wake up each day without the answers they deserve. That kind of loss does not fade. It changes a family forever,” he said.
President Nygren said solutions include the building of the Missing and Murdered Diné Relatives database in partnership with Navajo Technical University, strengthening the Turquoise Alert systems, improving coordination with the states and federal government, confronting the nayéé’ through prevention, treatment, and community support, and promoting safety and awareness in schools.
Navajo Nation Council Delegate Amber Crotty, who leads the Missing and Murdered Diné Relatives (MMDR) Task Force, opened the symposium with an update. She spoke about protecting children and healing from the history of violence and trauma. “Collectively, we’re going to heal together,” she said. “We want our children to live in a community that’s safe, that brings our values, and that they also feel that they want to come back home,” she said.
Anthony Begay presenting on Strengthening Families.
Anthony Begay, Program Manager for the Navajo Treatment Center for Children and Their Families and leader for the DAP’s Suicide Prevention Task Force, spoke on Strengthening Communities. His presentation focused on foundational teachings from the four cardinal directions and the clan system that can be used in the home and among families.
Navajo Division of Behavioral and Mental Health Services staff wearing red on May 5, symbolizing remembrance and awareness of missing and murdered relatives.
The symposium was hosted by the Division of Behavioral and Mental Health Services, which also leads the DAP’s Substance Abuse Task Force. Other presentations included Traditional Pathways to Healing, Caring for the Human Spirit, Survivor Support, Turquoise Alert and Missing Persons Clearinghouse, Spirit of a Woman, Culture is Prevention and a panel discussion on Crisis Response. Resources were on site to provide information on services to participants, including the Department for Self Reliance, Department of Family Services, and the NDCFS Office of Executive Director.
The documentary, “She Cried That Day,” was screened on the first day of the symposium, followed by a talking circle at the Navajo Nation Museum hogan. A candlelight vigil in honor of victims was held the evening of the second day at the Ch’ihootso Indian Market.
The NDCFS is committed to providing administrative support and leadership for the continued implementation of the DAP. The next quarterly DAP gathering is June 18 in Bluff, Utah.
Zachariah J. Shorty 5th Annual May 5th National Day of Awareness, Farmington, NM
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