The intersection of feminism and Indianness in the activism of LaDonna Harris and Wilma Mankiller.

Abstract

My work offers a comparative examination of the use of feminism and Indian identity in the careers of LaDonna Harris and Wilma Mankiller. While they took different paths to political activism, Harris as the wife of a United States senator and Mankiller as the first female chief of the Cherokee Nation, they share a number of similarities. A study of these women, who were the two most prominent Native American women in the twentieth century, offers a useful vehicle through which to understand larger issues in federal Indian policy, the role of Native American women in politics, and the use of identity politics. Both received recognition as humanitarians and advocates of women's rights as well. A comparative study of Harris and Mankiller, therefore, has ramifications at a national level and in a wide variety of areas, including civil rights and the environment. The way each came to national prominence, how they projected their images and identities, and how they have been depicted by the media are issues that are explored throughout.

The format consists of an introduction followed by two chapters that focus on LaDonna Harris, two chapters that deal with Wilma Mankiller and two in which they are compared as Native American leaders and as women in politics. The introduction sets up the significance of the work and situates it within the existing historiography. Chapter one deals with how LaDonna Harris became involved in politics as a congressional wife, her work with Oklahomans for Indian Opportunity, which she founded in 1965, and the public relationship of her and her husband, Senator Fred Harris. Chapter two examines how she evolved into an activist in her own right, the founding of Americans for Indian Opportunity, and how her national reputation took on an identity separate from that of her husband. Chapter three examines Mankiller's early life and then moves into an analysis of Mankiller's election to deputy chief of the Cherokee Nation in 1983, her ascension to principal chief in 1985 when Chief Ross Swimmer left to work for the Bureau of Indian Affairs, and her election to principal chief in 1987. Allegations of sexism in elections and gender-opposition to her leadership are explored as well. Chapter four deals with Mankiller's tenure as chief from 1985--1995. A discussion of her accomplishments, leadership, and symbolism to Indians and non-Indians during a period of renewed interest in Indianness is discussed. Chapters five and six deal with both Harris and Mankiller. Chapter five examines how each is a product of the shift from termination to self-determination and their roles in federal Indian politics. Their use of community development and their prominence in the national arena is evaluated here as well. Chapter six focuses on their role in politics as women, including the influence of feminism and their shared belief that no sexism existed among Indians prior to contact. This chapter concludes by placing them in the larger context of the changing nature of the role of women in politics.