PABLO — The Missing Murdered Indigenous Person crisis is one that state lawmakers are helping to address after passing multiple bills this last session.
Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribe officials are hosting a forum this week to teach people what they can do at home to help combat this crisis.
School wasn't back is session Tuesday on the Salish Kootenai College campus, but people were learning about the missing indeginous persons problem plaguing the country.
Organizers hope that people leave the three-day event with a sense of what they can do to help combat this problem.
"That's the message that we are trying to get -- that we don't want to just go somewhere where everybody is just talking about it and just saying...it's a national trend right now and everyone is like, what are we going to do about this problem," Jami Pluff said.
"We want people to go away saying 'hey, I can be a part of this. My little part of this -- whether it's reporting this to law and order or being apart of the work group or whatever they do is part of the solution'," Pluff added.
Officials say that one of the biggest things that someone can do is help keep people informed on the topic and be aware of your surroundings.
"Now you have to be cautious about everywhere you go -- empty parking lots, getting into your car after the movies -- and we really just need to bring greater awareness to the whole community that it is something that could happen because people are vulnerable," Pluff said.
If you still think that this is a problem that is not affecting Western Montana people in law enforcement say otherwise.
"I guess it's important and I always try to push on when I get a kind of platform like this that just to make it real. It is here. These kind of people are here and our younger youth who are out there running around are falling victim to people and like I said it is here," William Mesteth wth the CSKT Tribal Police said.
The conference will continue through Thursday with instruction and hands on steps to combat this crisis.
