In this episode, we share the story of Quana Big Spring, a 17-year-old from Kansas City, who remains missing. She was last seen on October 30, 2023, when she went out for a walk around 7 p.m. and never returned home. Quana, who is 5’4” and 125 pounds, has gone missing twice before—each time facing dangers that highlight the systemic failures in protecting Indigenous youth.

Her case ties into the national crisis of Missing and Murdered Indigenous People (MMIP), where nearly 3,000 Native American children were reported missing to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children between 2012 and 2021. Alarmingly, 90% were labeled as “endangered runaways.” This classification often leads to a lack of urgency in their cases, leaving families to search for answers on their own.

Sources:

https://www.kshb.com/news/local-news/investigations/quanas-story-national-missing-and-murdered-indigenous-peoples-crisis-unfolding-in-kansas-city

https://www.kshb.com/news/local-news/investigations/family-belton-police-need-help-finding-missing-teenager-quana-big-spring

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