SPOKANE, Wash — Players and their families on competing tribal girls' teams at the Hardwood Classic Basketball tournament in Spokane held up red handprints Thursday night during their game.
The handprints are a symbol for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women.
This was a coordinated effort between the Wellpinit and Inchelium girls basketball teams.
The Wellpinit girls told KREM 2 this was their way of coming together and bring awareness to this issue.
Wellpinit Head Coach TJ Flett said he is immensely proud of his team for doing this.
"It felt good that both communities—even though we were battling it out on the court, we came together in that one moment to show that we are going to stand together as one," Flett said.
This was a big game for both communities. Because of that, they decided to take a stand together, in front of the crowd at the Spokane arena, for all missing and murdered indigenous women.
"We're just hoping that the number do go down until it's zero," senior guard Jada Orr said. "Zero is the goal. We don't want anymore missing sisters."
Wellpinit team captain Amelia Seyler said it is a moment they are so grateful to be a part of.
"It was really uplifting," Seyler said. "It felt powerful coming together as a whole community, but from different tribes."
The Wellpinit team will not be holding up the red hands again this tournament. But the teams said they will carry those red hand prints with them always.