Former Cherokee Chief Wilma Mankiller Dies
Wilma Mankiller, the once dirt-poor Oklahoma farm girl who grew up to become an American Indian and women’s rights activist, author and the first woman to hold the Cherokee Nation’s highest office, died Tuesday. She was 64.
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"Our personal and national hearts are heavy with sorrow and sadness with the passing this morning of Wilma Mankiller," said Chad Smith, principal chief of the Cherokee Nation. "We feel overwhelmed and lost when we realize she has left us, but we should reflect on what legacy she leaves us. We are better people and a stronger tribal nation because of her example of Cherokee leadership, statesmanship, humility, grace, determination and decisiveness."
Mankiller was born into poverty in Oklahoma in 1945. In 1956 her family was resettled in California, where she married, raised her children, completed her education, and became an activist, participating in the 1969 occupation of Alcatraz Island. She returned to Oklahoma in 1977 and began working for the Cherokee Nation. By 1983 she was the deputy chief, and became principal chief in 1985 when Ross Swimmer resigned from that position to become head of the BIA. She was re-elected twice, finally choosing not to run again for re-election in 1995 because of health problems.
Her tenure as Cherokee chief was remarkable for the growth of the Nation both numerically and financially. She spoke out for the culture and the rights of her people, and looked after the needs of rural Cherokees through community development and infrastructure improvements.
The death of Wilma Mankiller today feels like the end of an era to me. She was a proud activist who was able to put her idealism to work in the service of her tribe and of women everywhere. Despite her physical challenges and the very real struggles she had to overcome to establish herself as the chief of the Cherokees, she remained strong and committed, a role model in her ability to overcome both gender-based and racial prejudice without bitterness and with a positive and uplifting attitude. May others rise up to continue her struggle.