Native American Heritage Month

Notable Native People

November 2015
Robbinsdale Area Schools Indian Education Program
Native American Heritage Month is a time to celebrate rich and diverse cultures, traditions, and
histories and to acknowledge the important contributions of Native people. It is an opportune
time to educate the general public about Tribal Nations, to raise a general awareness about the
unique challenges Native people have faced both historically and in the present, and the ways
in which tribal citizens have worked to conquer these challenges.
The following list of people, ranging from historic and contemporary leaders, visual artists,
performance artists, athletes, entrepreneurs, and activists.

Wilma Mankiller (Cherokee Nation) The first female chief of the Cherokee Nation
Navajo Code Talkers (Navajo Nation) Utilized the Navajo language in WWII to transmit
messages
Tatanka Iyotanka/Sitting Bull (Hunkpapa Lakota) One of historys greatest resistors of
colonialism and staunch fighter for the traditional ways of the Lakota
Maria TallChief (Osage)- Americas first major prima ballerina
Jim Thorpe (Sac & Fox Nation)- The Greatest Athlete of the 20th Century
Ashley Callingbull (Enoch Cree Nation) First Native women to be crowned Mrs. Universe
Tony Duncan (San Carlos Apache, Arikara, Mandan and Hidatsa) Award winning hoop
dancer and musician
Charlene Teters (Spokane) Artist and activist against stereotypes in the media
Louis Riel (Metis)- Political leader of the Metis people
Matika Wilbur (Swinomish and Tulalip) - Artist changing the way Native Americans are seen
Kendal Netmaker (Sweetgrass First Nation)- Entrepreneur & founder of Neechie Gear
Jessica Metcalfe (Turtle Mountain Ojibwe) - Owner of Beyond Buckskin, a digital space
dedicated to Native fashion
Nicholas Galanin (Tligit) - Contemporary Alaska Native Artist
Sacheen Littlefeather (White Mountain Apache, Yaqui) - Standing up for the positive
treatment of American Indians
Jamie Okuma (Luiseno, Shoshone-Bannock) - Intricate beadwork artist

----Wilma Mankiller (Cherokee Nation) The first female chief of the Cherokee Nation

Wilma Mankiller was the first female chief of the Cherokee Nation. Born in Tahlequah,
Oklahoma in 1945, she was a citizen of the Cherokee Nation that was forcibly removed their
homelands. After moving to San Francisco with her family in the mid-1950s, she earned her
bachelors degree in social sciences.
The American Indian reclamation of Alcatraz Island in the 1960s inspired her to become more
active in Native issues. After returning to Oklahoma in the mid-1970s, she began working for the
Cherokee Nation government. She became the tribes principal chief in 1985 and focused on
the nations government, healthcare, and education systems.
As the Cherokee Nations first female chief, she transformed the nation-to-nation
relationship between the Cherokee Nation and the federal government, and served as
an inspiration to women in Indian Country and across America. Her legacy will continue
to encourage and motivate all who carry on her work.
-President Barack Obama

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--Navajo Code Talkers (Navajo Nation) Utilized the Navajo language in WWII to transmit
messages

The beginning of the Navajo Code Talkers began on May 4, 1942 when 29 recruits were placed
aboard a bus and transported to San Diego, California for Marine Corps training. The program
was originally established in September gearing to create a code language that had no written
alphabet or documentation.
The complexity of Navajo linguistics allowed it to become an ideal choice to be used in code
due to the lack of documentation made available for learning to speak the language and ability
for the same words to mean multiple things based on sound. Navajo males between the ages of
17 and 32 were recruited. Some leaving their Tribal land for the time to travel overseas on the
front lines. After the ending of the war and returning in the United States, the existence of the
Navajo Code Talker program was kept a secret for decades more.
Video: Chester Nez- Navajo Code Talker, Living History
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--Tatanka Iyotanka/Sitting Bull (Hunkpapa Lakota) One of historys greatest resistors of

colonialism and staunch fighter for the traditional ways of the Lakota

Tatanka Iyotanka, also known as Sitting Bull, was a Hunkpapa Lakota leader who united
the Lakota Nation in the fight to remain free and sovereign. As a young man, historical
accountants assert that he was already a deep thinker and a strong warrior.
In American culture, he is known best for his part in the Battle of the Little Bighorn.
Before the battle, Tatanka Iyotanka had a vision of soldiers falling into camp. In later
years, he traveled with Buffalo Bills Wild West Show. He is well known for his generosity
and concern for people.
Tatanka Iyotanka strongly protested against any cessions of Tribal lands and opposed
reservation confinement. After the Battle of the Little Bighorn, he fled to Canada until
1881. After he returned to the reservation, he remained an outspoken advocate for his
people until his murder in 1890.
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-----Maria TallChief (Osage)- Americas first major prima ballerina

Beadwork by Summer Peters

Elizabeth Maria Tallchief is famous for being the first American prima ballerina for the
New York City Ballet. Born in Fairfax, Oklahoma, in 1925, Marias father was an Osage
leader. Her Osage name is Wa-Xthe-Thomba (Woman of Two Worlds).
In 1933, Maria moved to Beverly Hills with her family and studied ballet until she was 17,
when she moved to New York City and joined the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo where
she quickly became a featured soloist. Her first husband, George Balanchine, was one
the 20th centurys most famous choreographer and the cofounder and ballet master of
the New York City Ballet.
Maria Tallchief took what had been a European art form and made it Americas
own- how fitting that a Native American woman would do that. George
Balanchine once told audiences not to analyze ballet. Words cannot describe it,
he said, you cannot explain a flower. So its impossible to explain the radiance
and grace of Maria Tallchief.
-President William Clinton

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--Jim Thorpe (Sac & Fox Nation)- The Greatest Athlete of the 20th Century

Jim Thorpe was named the Greatest Athlete of the 20th Century. He was born in Bellemonta,
Oklahoma in 1888. He attended the Haskell Indian School and was later recruited to attend the
Carlisle Indian School, a well known boarding school. He excelled in track and field, football,
and baseball.
He was chosen to compete in the 1912 Summer Olympics in decathlon (ten track events) and
the pentathlon (five track events). Although he overwhelmingly won both competitions, he was
asked to return the medals won at the Olympics and had his name erased from the record
books because he had been declared a professional athlete when he played baseball
previously.
After the Olympics, he played baseball for the New York Giants, Cincinatti Reds, and Boston
Braves. He also played professional football for the Canton Bulldogs. In 1982, his Olympic gold
medals were reinstated.
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----Ashley Callingbull (Enoch Cree Nation) First Native women to be crowned Mrs. Universe

Ashley Callingbull is the current reigning Mrs. Universe 2015 and a Canadian activist for Native
peoples rights and environmental causes. She is from the Enoch Cree Nation in Alberta and is
devoted to her culture and people. She works with community elders, youth, and Native women.
By the age of 10, she had won all Enochs princess crowns. She is a professionally trained
dancer in tap, ballet, jazz, and pointe. Her acting career has led her to a starring role in
Blackstone, a television show focused on a First Nation community. She is also a motivational
speakers and role model for many educational institutions, workshops, conferences, and award
ceremonies, and has presented for TED Talks and WE Day.
Immediately after winning the Mrs. Universe title, she used her public platform to bring greater
attention to the serious issue of Canadas missing and murdered indigenous women. Her voice
adds to the growing chorus calling for a national inquiry into the violence.
Video: Mrs. Universe Gets Political
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---Tony Duncan (San Carlos Apache, Arikara, Mandan and Hidatsa) Award winning hoop
dancer and musician

Tony Duncan is an award winning hoop dancer and musician. His father taught him how to play
traditional flute when he was 10. Today, he is the lead flutist in the celebrated musical group
EStun-Bah (Apache for For the woman). His performances combine traditional hoop dancing
and live music.
Duncan was named Artist of the Year at the Native American Music Awards. He has starred in a
music video with singer Nelly Furtado. He was also in a Ford commercial starring Bret Michaels
of the hair-band Poison, that was filmed in association with the 2011 Grammy awards.
Video- Tony Duncan 2011 Hoop Dance Championship
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--Charlene Teters (Spokane) Artist and activist against stereotypes in the media

Known for her activism and art, Charlene Teters is a professor at the Institute of American Indian
Arts. As a founding Board Member of the National Coalition on Racism in Sports and the Media
and Navajo Code Talkers, her activism began with a vigorous dispute with the University of
Illinois over their use of a stereotyped American Indian image as the schools mascot.
Her work has launched a national debate about the appropriateness of this practice by sports
and media. The nationally-aired award winning documentary In Whose Honor? by Jay
Rosenstein is based on her work.
My people paid with their blood to have anything left and so I have to guard and
protect it so that we have it for those generations yet unborn and I owe it to them.
I owe it to my children, I owe it to myself.
Video: Trailer "In Whose Honor?"
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---Louis Riel (Metis)- Political leader of the Metis people

Louis Riel was a political leader of the Metis people of the Canadian prairies and founder of
Manitoba. Born in 1844 in the Red River Settlement, he was Metis (people of mixed Canadian
Indian and Euro-Canadian ancestry). His father was an educated who helped organize
community aid to end the Hudsons Bay Company monopoly. When his father died, he left his
Catholic School and moved away.
When he returned a number of years later, the Red River community of Metis people had grown
and developed a distinct culture which combined Native and French Canadian elements.
Religious groups became notable and the Red River political climate was uncertain and volatile.
Following the Red River Rebellion, he founded the province of Manitoba.
After growing political agitation, he was exiled from Canada. While teaching in Montana in 1884,
he was asked by the Metis community to present their grievances to the Canadian government.
After their concerns were ignored by the federal government, Riel was the leader of the shortlived 1885 Rebellion. He was later sentenced to death and was executed on November 16,
1885.

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--Matika Wilbur (Swinomish and Tulalip) - Artist changing the way Native Americans are seen

Matika Wilbur is a photographer, artist and social documentarian in Indian Country. She
explores the contemporary Native identity and experience.
She is currently working on Project 562, a national documentary project dedicated to
photographing contemporary Native America. With 5.2 million Native Americans living in the
United States, she seeks to disband the existing misleading and stereotypical images dating
back to the 19th century that still prevail. She is currently gathering original photographic images
and oral narratives from all Tribal communities in the U.S., organizing and presenting portraits
and stories from elders, culture bearers, linguistics, teachers, activists, artists, professionals,
and other contemporary Natives.
My goal is to represent Native people from every tribe. By exposing the astonishing
variety of the Indian presence and reality at this juncture, we will build cultural bridges,
abandon stereotypes, and renew and inspire our national legacy.
-Matika Wilbur

Video: Ted Talk- Changing the Way We See Native Americans- Matika Wilbur
http://www.matikawilbur.com/
--Kendal Netmaker (Sweetgrass First Nation)- Entrepreneur & founder of Neechie Gear

Kendal Netmaker is an entrepreneur and founder of Neechie Gear. As a child growing up, his
family moved around a lot and faced several hardships not uncommon to many First Nations
peoples. He eventually moved in with his grandmother.
He remembers becoming interested in soccer, but since he was unable to travel to games and
practices couldnt afford to play, he didnt think of it as an option. However, after a South African
friend talked to their parents into paying Netmakers fee and transporting him to practices and
games, he was able to play soccer.
As a result of this generosity, he participated in many sports teams and continued on with his
education, which led him to land a college volleyball scholarship and attend university.
While in university, I had a business idea in mind- creating a clothing brand that gives
back the way I was helped as a kid.
-Kendal Netmaker
He enter several competitions and received funding and services to help him start his business,
Neechie Gear (Neechie means friend in Cree). This brand has become recognizable all over
North America. He shares his story with Aboriginal youth and adults and focuses on themes
such as creating opportunities, entrepreneurship, overcoming barriers and Aboriginal
successes.

Video- Neechie Gear "Kendal's Story" Supporting Youth Sports

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--Jessica Metcalfe (Turtle Mountain Ojibwe) - Owner of Beyond Buckskin, a digital space
dedicated to Native fashion

Photographer: Matika Wilbur for Project 562

Dr. Jessica Metcalfe is the owner of the blog and online boutique Beyond Buckskin. As an
artists, she grew up painting and drawing in her community in North Dakota. She earned her
degree from Dartmouth, and her Ph.D from the University of Arizona. Her dissertation focused
on deconstructing European concepts of fashion theory and countering them with a uniquely
Native perspective with the goal to provide the only comprehensive critical scholarship on
contemporary Native American fashion design. Her research has resulted in the blog and the
online boutique , Beyond Buckskin.
The mission of Beyond Buckskin is to empower Native American artists and designers. By
advancing the quality of Native American fashion through education, it provides for an in podium
for societal participation. Inspired by relevant historical and contemporary Native American
clothing design and art, Beyond Buckskin promotes cultural appreciation, social relationships,
authenticity and creativity.
The voice of many is more powerful that the voice of one. This same philosophy has
allowed our Native communities to survive genocide and remain strong, and through
Beyond Buckskin, it will all our Native Designers to flourish as cultural ambassadors for
our people.
-Jessica Metcalfe
http://www.beyondbuckskin.com/
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--Nicholas Galanin (Tligit) - Contemporary Alaska Native Artist

Born in Sitka, Alaska, Nicholas Galanin first became involved in the visual arts by learning the
traditional crafts of his tribe from his father and uncle. He later his received a bachelors degree
in jewelry design from London Guildhall University, and his graduate degree in Indigenous
Visual Arts from Massey University in New Zealand.
Galanins work embraces both contemporary aesthetics and cultural elements. A recent print
series contrasted pop-bright colors and imagery with iconic, historical photographs of Native
Americans. A film project featured a breakdancer dancing to Native drumming.
I am inspired by generations of Tlingit creativity and contribute to this wealthy
conversation through active curiosity. There is no room in this exploration for the tired
prescription of the Indian Art World and its institutions. Through creating I assert my
freedom.
-Nicolas Galanin

Get Comfortable (2012), C-Print

Inert (2009)

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--Sacheen Littlefeather (White Mountain Apache, Yaqui) - Standing up for the positive treatment
of American Indians

Sacheen at Oscars in 1973

Sacheen Littlefeather was born in Salinas, California. She began her acting career at the
American Conservatory Theater in San Francisco, California in the 1970s. American Indians
were commonly stereotyped in Westerns and by the hippie movement.
In 1973, Sacheen was chosen by Marlon Brando to accept his Oscar The Godfather because
he wanted to bring national attention to the treatment of American Indians and the siege at
Wounded Knee, South Dakota.
Im representing Marlo Brando this evening and he has asked me to tell you that he
very regretfully cannot accept this very generous award. And the reasons for this are the
treatment of American Indians today by the film industry and on television in movie
reruns and also with recent happenings at Wounded Knee.
-Sacheen Littlefeathers 1973 Oscar speech
Since her well-known appearance, she has been very active in the Bay Areas Native
community. She was one of the original occupiers on Alcatraz Island to protest civil rights
violations against American Indians.

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--Jamie Okuma (Luiseno, Shoshone-Bannock) - Intricate beadwork artist

Jamie Okumas easily-identifiable work varies from soft sculptures to beaded shoes

Jamie Okuma began working with beads as a child creating her own dance regalia for powwows
near her home on the La Jolla Luisena Reservation. In high school, Okuma made her first
miniature jingle dress, which she placed on a doll figure.
Historical accuracy, exemplary workmanship, and keen attention to detail are the hallmarks of
her dolls, which are also frequently referred to as soft sculpture since the term doll seems to
diminish the aesthetic range of these creations. Generally taking up to four months to complete
a figure, Okuma focuses on the elaborate clothing and accessories that were the height of
Native fashion in the late 19th and early 20th-century Plains and Plateau region. Each detail is
in perfect miniature, from the tiny beaded bag to the sewn brass sequins. A work by Okuma is
much more than a traditional craft, but a piece of fine art for discriminating collectors.

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