Wilma Mankiller


The presentation of Wilma Mankiller: Challenges Facing 21st. Century Indigenous People presented by ASU Libraries is very appropriate for the Indigenous People of North America course, especially Module Five because it addresses the resilience of indigenous people despite attempts to eradicate their culture.  Wilma Mankiller is a Cherokee person who served as the first woman Chief of the Cherokee Nation for ten years. Among her accolades is the fact that she holds eighteen honorary Doctorate degrees and received the Presidential Medal of Freedom.  

Despite the immense diversity of indigenous people, Mankiller states, they have much in common. One commonality is that their lives are part of and inseparable from the natural world.  She mentions a very important prophecy: the world will end when the people are no longer capable of protecting or restoring its balance.  Considering climate change this prophecy is a concern not only to indigenous people but all people.  Other commonalities include the fact that they are connected by values, roots and colonial policies.

When looking at the future and its challenges she mentions that they must be optimistic: they have survived; they still have their languages, cultural practices, customs and ceremonies; and they can adapt.  Among the challenges is the need to develop a practical method to pass on traditional knowledge—their entire system of knowledge needs to be maintained.  She states indigenous people have the most valuable and ancient knowledge in the world therefore they must trust their own thinking again.  They need to acknowledge the anger of the past injustices but not keep it in their hearts. She ends with a Mohawk proverb: It is hard to see the future with tears in your eyes.
Mankiller states that there is a link between public perception and public policies.  It is important that more people become aware of the true history of indigenous people and the injustices they have suffered.  This could result in public policies that favor their continued survival.  If this does not happen, the world could loss indigenous knowledge forever. 

“Wilma Mankiller: Challenges Facing 21st. Century Indigenous People”.  2013.  ASU Libraries. Arizona State University.  Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9K_rVUmV7Y8&feature=youtu.be. November 26, 2018.

Comments

  1. UnknownDecember 10, 2018 at 11:14 AM

    I also reviewed Wilma Mankiller, I found her to be an amazing person who stood up for what she believe and fought for the Native Americans. According PBS webpage in a documentary about Wilma Mankiller “This is the story of an American hero. One who stands tall among the likes of Robert Kennedy, Harriet Tubman and Martin Luther King, Jr. Someone who humbly defied the odds and overcame insurmountable obstacles to fight injustice and gave a voice to the voiceless? And yet few people know her name. This is the story of an American legend, Wilma Mankiller, who overcame rampant sexism and personal challenges to emerge as the Cherokee Nation’s first woman Principal Chief in 1985”.

    http://www.pbs.org/program/mankiller/

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    Replies
    1. UnknownDecember 12, 2018 at 11:31 AM

      Thank you for adding information about Wilma Mankiller. I found an article about her on the National Women’s History Museum website. She was one of eleven children born to a Cherokee father and a Dutch-Irish mother. She became involved in Native American issues during the time of the Native American attempt to reclaim Alcatraz Island. She said, “…when Alcatraz occurred, I became aware of what needed to be done to let the rest of the world know that Indians had rights too” (www.womenshistory.org/education-resources/biographies/wilma-mankiller). She suffered two personal tragedies after moving back to Oklahoma from California. She was in a car accident from which she needed a year to recover and she also suffered from a chronic neuromuscular disease. She embraced the Cherokee vision of “being of good mind” which meant for her thinking positively, taking whatever came your way and doing your best to serve others.
      She focused her activities toward education, job training and healthcare for her people. She was also willing to work with the federal government and the Environmental Protection Agency on behalf of the Cherokee Nation. Wilma died of pancreatic cancer in 2010. She has written an autobiography titled Mankiller: A Chief and Her People.

      Howat, Kenna. “Wilma Mankiller. “National Women’s Historical Museum”. 16 Aug. 2018. Retrieved from www.womenshistory.org/education-resources/biographies/wilma-mankiller). December 12, 2018.

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  2. CKaneDecember 10, 2018 at 11:37 AM

    I think that Wilma Mankiller is a strong native woman that has strong beliefs that are very valid. I think she is right that they need to make things they way they use to be, and continue to thrive to make others understand history.

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  3. Alex KackDecember 12, 2018 at 8:14 PM

    I though your post (and the comments) did a great job of giving Wilma Mankiller the praise she deserved. I wound up doing some more reading about Mankiller and was really amazed by all of her accomplishment and all of the personal hardship she faced. She was able to due all of these amazing, inspiring things for her community in spite of the fact that she was plagued by chronic health issues.

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