JANUARY 2021

PAIUTE PROPHET WOVOKA’S VISION LEADS TO THE “GHOST DANCE” Paiute shaman Wovoka (aka Jack Wilson, 1856-1932) had a prophetic vision during a solar eclipse which resulted in the messianic Ghost Dance … Continue reading “JANUARY 1, 1889”

HAWAIIAN CONSORT EMMA KALANIKAUMAKAAMANO NAE’A ROOKE (“QUEEN EMMA”) BORN Born in Honolulu, Emma, or “Royal Emma,” was daughter of High Chief George Na’ea and High Chieftess Fanny Kekelaokalani Young.  In 1856, … Continue reading “JANUARY 2, 1836”

MEXICAN GOVERNOR AND REVOLUTIONARY FELIPE CARRILLO PUERTO EXECUTED Born November 4, 1874, in Yucatan, Felipe Carrillo Puerto was of Maya background.  During the Caste War, he was imprisoned for urging Mayas … Continue reading “JANUARY 3, 1924”

LENAPE COLLEGE FOOTBALL HALL OF FAME PLAYER ALBERT EXENDINE DIED Born on January 7, 1884, in Bartlesville, in Indian Territory, “Ex” had never played football before joining Pop Warner‘s Carlisle Indians … Continue reading “JANUARY 4, 1973”

KIOWA “THE NIGHT THE STARS FELL” “In the Witchita Mountains, on the Southern Plains, the Kiowa were awakened by a burst of light, and running out from their tipis, they found … Continue reading “JANUARY 5, 1834”

U.S. SUPREME COURT RECOGNIZES WATER RIGHTS OF NATIVE AMERICANS ON RESERVATIONS Winters v. United States, 207 U.S. 564 (1908), was a United States Supreme Court case clarifying water rights of American … Continue reading “JANUARY 6, 1908”

CANADIAN MOHAWK CHIEF ODESERUNDIYE (CAPT. JOHN DESERONTYON) DIED. Deserontyon, Mohawk chief and British ally, likely was born in New York’s Mohawk Valley in the 1740s.  His name meant “Where Thunder Was.”  … Continue reading “JANUARY 7, 1811”

THE DAWES SEVERALTY ACT OF 1887 SIGNED INTO LAW BY PRESIDENT GROVER CLEVELAND The Dawes Act, also known as the General Allotment Act, authorized the President to divide tribal land into … Continue reading “JANUARY 8, 1887”

GUATEMALAN K’ICHE’ NOBEL PRIZE ACTIVIST RIGOBERTA MENCHÚ TUM BORN Raised in the K’iche’ (pr. Quiche’) branch of the Mayan culture, Rigoberta, while still a teen, became involved in social reform and … Continue reading “JANUARY 9, 1959”

CHOCTAW BALLERINA ROSELLA HIGHTOWER BORN Of Choctaw heritage, Hightower was a celebrated ballerina whose international career included founding the Centre de Danse Classique in Cannes, France, one of the world’s leading … Continue reading “JANUARY 10, 1920”

SCHEROKEE JUDGE/STATESMAN CLEMENT V. “UNCLE CLEM” ROGERS BORN Born in Westville, Goingsnake District, Cherokee Territory, Rogers’ parents, both of mixed blood, moved there from Georgia in 1832, before the Trail of … Continue reading “JANUARY 11, 1839”

GITXSAN TOTEM CARVER SIMOGYET GEEL (WALTER HARRIS) DIED Born June 10, 1931, in Kispiox, British Columbia (B.C.), Harris was a hereditary chief of the Gitxsan nation whose art included work in … Continue reading “JANUARY 12, 2009”

NATIVE HAWAIIAN NATIONALIST LEADER JOSEPH NĀWAHĪ BORN A writer, teacher, lawyer, politician, newspaper editor, and artist, Nāwahī was a Hawaiian patriot and Renaissance man.  Born in Puna, Hawai‘i, in 1842, he … Continue reading “JANUARY 13, 1842”

HIN-MAH-TOO-YAH-LAT-KEKHT (CHIEF JOSEPH) GIVES LINCOLN HALL SPEECH IN WASHINGTON To obtain relief from Congress and the Department of Indian Affairs, Nez Perce Chief Joseph travelled to Washington, DC, in 1879.  The … Continue reading “JANUARY 14, 1879”

ZAPOTEC BENITO JUÁREZ BECOMES FIRST INDIGENOUS MEXICAN PRESIDENT The first indigenous Mexican president (1861-72), Juárez was born on March 21, 1806 in Oaxaca.  In 1831, he received his law degree and … Continue reading “JANUARY 15, 1858”

IDLE NO MORE DAY OF ACTION PROTESTS BRING CANADA TO STANDSTILL Idle No More, an ongoing protest movement founded by four women in December 2012, is a grassroots effort among the … Continue reading “JANUARY 16, 2013”

HAWAIIAN QUEEN LILI’UOKALANI OVERTHROWN–FORCED TO ABDICATE In 1887, a group of white sugar planters and businessmen known as the Hawaiian League became angered by King David Kalākaua’s attempts to dilute their … Continue reading “JANUARY 17, 1893”

TLINGIT TRANSLATOR EDUCATOR TILLIE PAUL BORN Born in Victoria, British Columbia, Tillie had a Tlingit mother and Scottish father.  After her mother died, she was raised by an aunt and uncle … Continue reading “JANUARY 18, 1863”

CHEROKEE JENNIE ROSS COBB DIED—FIRST NATIVE AMERICAN WOMAN PHOTOGRAPHER Born December 26, 1881, in Tahlequah, Indian Territory, a great-granddaughter of Cherokee Chief John Ross,  Jennie took up amateur photography around 1896 … Continue reading “JANUARY 19, 1959”

RADIO TUKOYAKTUK SIGNS ON THE AIR–FIRST ABORIGINAL RADIO STATION At 6:45 p.m., CFCT Tuktoyaktuk signed on for the first time, broadcasting in English and Inuktutuk to about 650 residents of the … Continue reading “JANUARY 20, 1971”

LAKOTA-CHIPPEWA EDUCATOR TAWACIN WASTEWIN (PATRICIA LOCKE) BORN Locke, whose Lakota name meant “She of good consciousness‚ a compassionate woman,” was born on the Fort Hall Reservation, Idaho, of Hunkpapa Lakota & … Continue reading “JANUARY 21, 1928”

ACOMA PUEBLO REVOLT/MASSACRE BEGINS Acoma leader Zutacapan learned that the Spanish intended to conquer Acoma Pueblo.  Knowing of their atrocities, he sought to negotiate.  The Spanish Governor Juan de Oñate sent … Continue reading “JANUARY 22, 1599”

WILLIAM R. POGUE BORN–ASTRONAUT/FIGHTER PILOT OF CHOCTAW HERITAGE Born in Okemah, Oklahoma, Pogue was of Choctaw heritage.  Joining the Air Force in 1951, he logged 43 combat missions in Korea and … Continue reading “JANUARY 23, 1930”

MOHAWK BASKET WEAVER KAWENNATAKIE (MARY ADAMS) BORN Adams, whose Mohawk name meant “Approaching Voice,” was born at the Akwesasne Reserve on Cornwall Island, Ontario.  Her mother died when Mary was 10 … Continue reading “JANUARY 24, 1917”

ONEIDA ONAN-GWAT-GO (REV. CORNELIUS HILL) LAST HEREDITARY CHIEF DIED Born November 13, 1834, Hill, whose Oneida name meant “Big Medicine,” was the first great Oneida chief to be born in Wisconsin after … Continue reading “JANUARY 25, 1907”

HUMAN RIGHTS TRIBUNAL RULES CANADA UNDERFUNDS FIRST NATIONS WELFARE SERVICES The Canadian Human Rights Tribunal ruled that the federal government of Canada discriminated against aboriginal children by underfunding welfare services on … Continue reading “JANUARY 26, 2016”

MEXICAN CAXCAN FEMINIST JOURNALIST JUANA BELÉN GUTIÉRREZ de MEDOZA BORN A Caxcan Indian from the state of Durango, she was an anarchist, feminist activist, typographer, and journalist.  In May 1901, she … Continue reading “JANUARY 27, 1875”

POTAWATOMI AUTHOR SIMON POKAGON, “RED MAN’S LONGFELLOW,” DIED Potawatomi Chief Simon Pokagon was born in 1830 in Berrien County, Michigan.  His mother realized the importance of education and sent him to … Continue reading “JANUARY 28, 1899”

NATIVE HAWAIIAN EDUCATOR/LEGISLATOR/ COMPOSER CHARLES EDWARD KING BORN Considered the “Dean of Hawaiian Music”, King was one of Hawai’i’s foremost composers, publishers, and band leaders.  He published three song books that … Continue reading “JANUARY 29, 1874”

SEMINOLE CHIEF OSCEOLA DIED Born Billy Powell in Alabama in 1804 to a Creek mother and Scottish father, he and his mother moved to Spanish Florida after the Creek War.  There, … Continue reading “JANUARY 30, 1838”

THE CALDER CASE: THE CANADIAN SUPREME COURT ACKNOWLEDGES ABORIGINAL TITLE Calder, et al. v. Attorney General of British Columbia (Calder case), was a legal action brought in 1969 by Nisga’a Chief … Continue reading “JANUARY 31, 1973”