Indigenous women lead

ICT

Many Indigenous and Native women have made significant news in 2023 and 2024. To commemorate March being Women’s History Month and March 8 being International Women’s Day, ICT has compiled the recent stories that spotlight Indigenous women. The stories range from Mattel, the Barbie doll maker, unveiling Wilma ManKiller, the first woman to serve as principal chief of the Cherokee Nation, becoming a doll and the first Native woman in space.

But that’s not all. There are more — many, many more.

Lily Gladstone, starred in the film “Killers of the Flower Moon” and has been garnering critical acclaim and award recognition from winning a Screen Actors Guild Award and Golden Globe. She is in the running for Best Actress at the Oscars on March 10. It’s an historic and monumental nomination. Two film industry experts, as well as dozens of other industry analysts, say Gladstone will beat Emma Stone for the Oscars’ best actress.

ICT also interviewed Gladstone before the release of “Killers of the Flower Moon” for her new short film for PBS called “Lily Gladstone: Far Out There.”

Kiawentiio, Mohawk, has a lead role in the highly anticipated Netflix series in “Avatar: The Last Airbender.” Kali Reis starred with Jodie Foster in the fourth season of “‘True Detective”. The Wampanoag/Cape Verdean boxing champion also reflected on Lily Gladstone’s Oscar nomination. Alaqua Cox, Menominee and Mohican Nation starred as the main character in Marvel Studios’ “Echo.”

Similar Stories:

• A serving of ‘Rubaboo’ brings crowds to Canada theaters: A new play by Métis performer/writer Andrea Menard is launching a nationwide tour
• From Osage Nation to Cannes Film Festival: Once-in-a-lifetime trip includes Martin Scorsese, Tim Cook, France, ‘Killers of the Flower Moon’ premiere and much more
• Film festival puts spotlight on Native women directors: ‘Extraordinary’ lineup presents films ‘from a Native perspective’
• ‘Little Bird’ television series explores Canada's ‘Sixties Scoop’: Powerful new show will be accompanied on PBS by a companion documentary
• A play about family ... and a boarding school's future: Conversation with Mary Kathryn Nagle and Jonodev Chaudhuri
• 'Boil Alert' film explores right to clean water: Stylish new documentary follows one woman's search across First Nations
• Native comedy duo team up for new sitcom pilot: Sierra Teller Ornelas and Jana Schmieding are developing a pilot for a comedy featuring Native women

Chef Sherry Pocknett — whose Sly Fox Den Too restaurant features traditional foods with the seasons— became the first Indigenous woman to win a prestigious James Beard Award as best chef in the Northeast.

Abenaki filmmaker Alanis Obomsawin was awarded the prestigious Edward MacDowell Medal for her six decades of work chronicling the lives of First Nations people in Canada and beyond. She is the first woman filmmaker and the first Indigenous person to receive the medal.

Among the winners of the 2023 Pulitzer Prize, which recognizes the best of journalism and the arts, Connie Walker, Okanese First Nation (Cree) and the Gimlet Media team won for audio journalism. Walker, investigative reporter and host, focused on her father's boarding school experience in eight episodes for “Stolen: Surviving St. Michael's.”

ICT President Karen Lincoln Michel, Ho Chunk, was awarded an Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree by Marquette University. The recognition is for her distinguished career as a reporter, editor, and as the chief executive officer for IndiJ Public Media., the nonprofit news company that owns ICT.

Oglala Lakota rapper Stella Standingbear became the first Lakota artist to win at the International Indigenous Hip Hop Awards in Vancouver, Canada. She was the only artist nominated three times this year.

Native artist Marlena Myles — who uses advanced virtual reality technology to tell traditional stories — was awarded a $50,000 Arts+Tech Fellowship from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation. Myles, Spirit Lake Dakota, is one of five innovative artists who are working at the nexus of art and technology.

Jennifer Tafoya’s etched black pot with dinosaur designs titled, “Caught by Surprise,” was named 2023 Best of Show at the Santa Fe Indian Market.

In February 2023, Marilynn Malerba, Mohegan Tribe, and Shannon Holsey, Stockbridge Munsee Band of Mohican Indians were recognized at the 27th Annual National Indian Women “Supporting Each Other” Honor Lunch during the National Congress of American Indians Executive Council Winter Session.

MMIP advocate Kola Shippentower, Umatilla, is the first Native American player for the Oregon Ravens, the state’s tackle football team for women and nonbinary players

Skyesong Alexis, won the women’s championship flight in the Native American Open golf tournament with a score of 150, 15 strokes lower than her nearest rival. It was her second first-place finish in three months – she also placed first at the Indigenous Ontario Championship in August. Alexis, from the Alexis Nakoda Sioux Nation in Alberta, Canada, began playing golf at 8 years old.

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Janee' Kassanavoid, Comanche, became the first Native woman to medal at the World Athletics Championships, first with bronze in hammer throw in 2022 and then with silver in 2023 in Budapest, Hungary. She’s aiming to qualify for the 2024 Olympics in Paris, and make history.

Abby Roque, Ojibway from Wanahpitae First Nation, was a key part of the victory for Team USA’s win against Canada at the IIHF World Women’s Ice Hockey Championship. It’s her first gold medal since joining the national U.S. team. 

Ojibwe sisters from the Northwest Angle #33 in Canada, Katierie and Kaiya Sandy, are now two time defending state champions. They helped Warroad High School, located in northern Minnesota not far from the Canadian border, to the 2022 and 2023 Class A Minnesota state hockey championships.

Sara Hill became Oklahoma’s first female Native American federal judge. The U.S. Senate confirmed Hill's appointment as a U.S. District judge for the Northern District of Oklahoma on December 19, 2023.

Leading the nation’s lawyers: Mary Smith, Cherokee Nation, takes office as president of the American Bar Association

Fatima Abbas, Haliwa Saponi, became the first director of the Office of Tribal and Native Affairs at the U.S. Treasury. She was previously interim director of the office, which is first of its kind for the department and a permanent fixture.

• 'The aunties are coming': At a bootcamp aimed at cultivating leadership among Indigenous women, the goal is community and connection #NativeVote24
• Winnebago sisters campaign for change in Iowa: Two sisters in Sioux City, Iowa, and a third Native woman are seeking election to city and school boards that have seen few, if any, Native women as members #NativeVote23
• 'We are here to stay’: Coming up, we visit the first woman in the history of the Alabama-Coushatta Tribe of Texas to serve as a chief. Plus representative-elect Charlotte Little will soon become New Mexico's newest Indigenous lawmaker. And the ICT newscast is expanding, meet our newest producer
• Navajo candidate seeks Utah Legislature seat: Davina Smith is building off her 2022 campaign for another run #NativeVote24
• Navajo Nation swears in historic president, vice president: Buu Van Nygren is the youngest person to serve as the Navajo Nation president; Richelle Montoya, is the first female VP
• Albuquerque Public Schools has first Indigenous board member: Ronalda Tome-Warito, Navajo, was sworn into office on January 

Books, Music, Food and Dance

• Jingle dress children’s book shows dance is prayer: Author found solace during pandemic by watching healing dances online
• NDN Girls Book Club promotes Indigenous literature, empowers Native girls: Phoenix event will bring together young writers to share their work and ideas
• New children’s book tells untold Native baseball story: Author Traci Sorell and illustrator Arigon Starr bring the 1911 World Series to life
• Diné author’s story collection weaves heritage, identity: Stacie Denetsosie’s new book illustrates power of storytelling to reshape past narratives and embrace the Diné tradition
• Miracle Spotted Bear is stuck in between: The Oglala Lakota student-athlete found time to release her debut album
• The power of women backup singers: Athena Cloud is dedicated to teach and show women of all ages to be proud of their voices
• Cooking with culture, Oyul Fusion: Two Lakota and Laotian sisters are launching a new food business to combine cultural foods and flavors
• Chef takes Indigenous flavors to ‘Great American Recipe’: Maria Given’s Native foods will face a multicultural menu on the PBS show’s new season
• Serving coffee with a side of Diné culture: An Indigenous-led coffee shop is brewing up coffee with a side of Diné tradition and Innovation in Phoenix
• An Indigenous kitchen, duck eggs ... and Leonardo DiCaprio: Redefining food for the next generation
• Envisioning Indigenous futures: Meagan Byrne wants to create a world where Indigenous gamers can envision a post-Colonial future
• Native entrepreneur wants to fill healthy food business gap: ‘I just wanted to create food that is not hurting Native people and not hurting the earth’
• ‘Every single dance … I think of a community’: From jingle dress to fancy shawl, ‘it takes a lot of strength and endurance to be a powwow dancer’
• Sharing the joys of dancing: ‘Our culture is really beautiful and if you know the stories behind it you’ll understand’

Art, Beauty and Fashion

• Prados Beauty inspired by color and culture: Indigenous-owned cosmetics company joins with visual artists as products go national
• Art show helped bring Indigenous woman home: With ‘Portraits in Red,’ artist Nayana LaFond aims to raise awareness of Missing and Murdered Indigenous People. Currently on display at Yakima Valley Museum, the traveling art show will continue its Pacific Northwest tour in January
• Dreaming Our Futures: ICT speaks with curator Brenda Child about her exhibit featuring Ojibwe and Dakota artists
• Barbie goes to fish camp: ‘I want people, especially young people, to see themselves represented’
• Barbie gets a Navajo makeover: Award-winning weaver Barbara Teller Ornelas draws accolades for her custom Diné dolls
• Bringing alterNative fashion to Rapid City: Garbage Tale Vintage is bringing sustainable, upcycled fashion to Rapid City and preparing for a showcase at Native Pop
• Phoenix artist opening doors for future Super Bowls: Indigenous artist Lucinda Hinojos is leaving her mark in Phoenix and opening doors for future Super Bowls

In Memoriam

• Nicole Ducheneaux, Native rights champion, ‘warrior lawyer’ dies: Ducheneaux spent her legal career fighting for the rights of tribes, tribal organizations and individuals, including representing the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe in its fight against the Dakota Access pipeline
• ‘Force of nature’ Ada Deer dies at 88: The Menominee woman fought against federal termination policy and led her tribe’s restoration effort
• Remembering Elouise Cobell: Blackfeet trailblazer led a nearly 13-year-long fight for fairness and accountability from the federal government. Soon, the National Women's Hall of Fame will induct her posthumously

Other stories that center Indigenous women:

— Giving Two-Spirit people a safe place: Lakota couple opens Rapid City, S.D.’s first Indigenous Two-Spirit space
— From the Navajo Nation to the Balkans: Analyss Benally is an example of Native basketball talent relocating to far-away countries to keep their basketball dream alive
— First Nations artist shows her cards: In Canada, a First Nations artist is adding Indigenous culture and heritage to designs on playing cards
— Lessons from her matriarchs: Seminole Tribe of Florida citizen S.R. Tommie talks business at the popular Reservation Economic Summit in Las Vegas #RES2023
— Model and activist draws on tradition, community for healing: Quannah Chasinghorse was the youth keynote speaker at the 2023 Elders and Youth conference in Alaska
— Survivors speak out against domestic abuse: Indigenous women more likely to experience intimate partner violence, less likely to receive help
— Multi-talented Matika Wilbur shares curriculum tid-bits: Native work must fill in the gaps, dynamic education keynote speaker tells Native educators
— Two sisters fight for freedom in 'miscarriage of justice': The First Nations women were convicted despite another man's confession in what an official calls 'Indigenization of Canadian corrections'
— 50 years later, Lakota girl still missing: Family remembers 12-year-old Delema Sits Poor on 50th anniversary of her disappearance from the Pine Ridge reservation in South Dakota
— Indigenous women reclaim traditional birthing practices: As more South Dakota counties become maternal healthcare deserts, women look to alternatives. One is a traditional earth lodge
— How 3 Indigenous women are leading the way on climate change: These experts bring knowledge and justice to the climate conversation
— Women of Wounded Knee: ‘Why Creator gave me my life’: A special project is gathering oral histories from the women at the Wounded Knee occupation 50 years ago
— Lakota woman opens Pine Ridge children’s shelter: A new children's shelter opened its doors in August for the Pine Ridge Reservation community

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