A new video highlights the important work these riders do on behalf of missing and murdered Indigenous people.

By: Janaki Jitchotvisut Courtesy: RideApart

If you're on motorcycle YouTube at all, chances are excellent that you've seen Doodle on a Motorcycle before. She's been around for several years, documenting her own personal journey with motorcycling and inspiring other riders along the way. Very recently, she started mentoring a local kid in her area who wanted to learn to ride, and even got him some gear to help keep him safe.

In many ways, she represents some of the kindheartedness and community-mindedness that a lot of the best folks in the motorcycling community have. Over the US national holiday weekend in November 2023, she posted what could be one of her most impactful videos yet. 

For the past couple of years, Doodle has ridden to Sturgis. In 2023, she got in touch with the Medicine Wheel Ride, a group of Indigenous women motorcyclists and allies who raise awareness about the epidemic of Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women (and Relatives), or MMIWR. Across the US and Canada, the rates of violence, murder, and trafficking are between four and 10 times the national averages, says the group.

The Medicine Wheel Ride is a grassroots, 501c3 nonprofit organization dedicated to both raising awareness about the issues surrounding MMIWR, advocating for the families of those who are missing and/or murdered, and fighting for justice for those affected. They fundraise as well, with funds going to print and canvass with fliers for MMIWR, purchase billboards, and support the families of those who have disappeared.

In 2023, the Medicine Wheel Ride also brought its new documentary film about its work to the stops it made on the way to Sturgis. Sharing stories and resilience is a large part of what the group is all about, and it's something that Doodle's video highlighted for those of us who are not part of the Native community.

To learn more about the Medicine Wheel Ride, you can watch Doodle's video, and you can also visit the official Medicine Wheel Ride website, which we've linked in our Sources. If you're interested in donating, you can do so on their webpage. All proceeds from Doodle's video about the journey and the organization will also go to benefit the Medicine Wheel Ride, and you can donate on her YouTube page as well.

Source: Medicine Wheel Ride