Longest Walk 5 Mission
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The Longest Walk 5 -2014 - 2024
The Longest Walk 5 is the longest and the final Walk organized by Dennis Banks, Founder of the American Indian Movement. Our Mission is to walk across this country on foot, seeking ways to halt drug abuse and domestic and community violence and violence to ourselves across America. We will call attention to and seek guidance on the issues causing devastation in Indian communities and communities across the nation. Along the 13,000-mile journey, we hold gatherings and collect information on the issues people face today and how to heal our people and the earth to get the bigger picture. Throughout the Walk, the team will explore aspects of spirituality and traditional values with proven effectiveness. The walkers distribute anonymous surveys at gatherings and forums to present a tangible data source demonstrating the impact of drug abuse and domestic violence on reservations across the nation. This is the first time in the Longest Walk history that a community-led evaluation has been conducted with evidence-based tools embedded, such as ACES (Adverse Childhood Experiences Survey). Mission Outcome We reach our data goal and well beyond our 13,000-mile goal. The Walk has prepared a presentation of findings that we have publicly shared with health organizations, tribes, and individuals. The information helps determine what we must do to help halt this devastation. The path to healing trauma is finding safety, reckoning with what has happened, and reconnecting with the community. Spirituality and community values are critical elements of trauma recovery. But we need more. The findings from the Walk and surveys not only validate the need to do more across Indian Country to honor our rights to federal healthcare but also pave the way for significant improvements in healthcare rights. LW5 Founder - Dennis Banks LW5 Executive Director - Carol Collins LW5 CF0 - Bobby Wallace LW5 Consultant/ Team leader - Paul Komarek LW5 Data Analytics Team Leader - Jessica Sutterlict Graphics - Walter Copenhagen LW5 2016 Walk Leader Dennis Banks/ Chief Harry Kindness National Coordinator - Orlando Vigil Run Captain – Kid Valance Student Leader – Kelli Herr Official Photographer - Mario Pasho LW5 2017 & 2018 Walk Leader Bobby Wallace Run Captain – Kid Valance Spirit Walk 2022 Walk Leader - Darla Banks The Walk would not be possible without the walkers, runners, sponsors hosts, organizers, and donations! We express our deep gratitude to all. |