IMPACT OF WILMA MANKILLER ON FEMINISM.   Term Paper ID:30101 Click to get this paper

Essay Subject: Discusses her rise to power in the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma to Principal Chief.... More...

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Paper Abstract: Discusses her rise to power in the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma to Principal Chief. Her early impoverished life. Growing interest in tribal politics. Involvement with Naïve Americans in San Francisco. How she helped bring self-sufficiency to her people and helped raise the status of women. Her contribution to the feminist movement in general. Paper Introduction: The history of the women’s rights movement is littered with trailblazers who led the way before women believed they would achieve equal rights with men in society. From the suffragettes of the early twentieth century to the "girlpower" divas of the new millennium, women have struggled to carve out a voice and message of their own. Significant strides have been made towards gender-equality in the past century, with the right to vote and the right to have an abortion signifying important milestones in the women’s movement. And though the news is mostly good, there nevertheless remains a wide gulf in the way women and men are treated in our society. This fact is compounded by the deterioration of the feminist movement from its peak in the nineteen-sixties. As young women look to the new millennium, it is important that they identify leaders to emula Text of the Paper: The entire text of the paper is shown below. However, the text is somewhat scrambled. We want to give you as much information as we possibly can about our papers and essays, but we cannot give them away for free. In the text below you will find that while disordered, many of the phrases are essentially intact. From this text you will be able to get a solid sense of the writing style, the concepts addressed, and the sources used in the research paper. Her lifelong mission was to bring self-sufficiency to her people and to help raise the status of women. The notion that Mankiller has encountered more discriminationbecause of her gender than as a result of her race is shocking, and thisshock value is probably what she intends. In 1985, Swimmer resigned as chief to head theBureau of Indian Affairs, and with the help of Cherokee law Mankillerbecame the first woman in modern history to rule over a tribe. This is especially notablewhen one considers that the vast majority of feminist literature has beenwritten by white American and British women and has little relevance(except in the most general way) with the experiences of minority women.It is in this arena, the creation of a feminist tradition and history forminority women, that Wilma Mankiller's legacy will be most remembered.Wilma Mankiller contributes heavily to the creation of a new history forminority feminists in her many writings and speeches. Indeed, in Native American communities (in a sharp contrast to theWestern heritage) women were historically regarded as neither inferior norsuperior to men (Bowker 36). Throughout her life, Wilma Mankiller has led through example. Although her electionwas certainly a clarion call for minority women, it is her attempt to crafta true history of the Native American woman's struggle to be heard thattruly places Wilma Mankiller as one of the most important feminists of thetwentieth century. It was in theso called "enlightened" West that women were thoroughly marginalized andheld in thrall by a patriarchal society. Thistraining, combined with her undisputable charisma and force of character,was the foundation from which her example to all feminists was constructed. The problem with crafting an adequate history of feminism isthat there are so many differences between feminist history in differentcultures and countries that finding a simple unified theory that explainsglobal feminist history is close to impossible. Wilma Mankiller made history in 1983 when she became the first womanin modern history to lead a major Native American tribe. Martin's Press, New York, 1993.Sievers, Sharon: "Dialogue: Six (or More) Feminists in Search of A Historian," Journal of Women's History, I, no 2 (1989).http://www.umkc.edu/imc/mankillr.htm No wonderour written history speaks so often of war but rarely records descriptionsof our songs, dances, and simple joys of living" (2 ). Although Mankiller claimsthat she had no political aspirations during that period, nevertheless shehad started to train herself in the logistics of leadership. The implicit equality of the sexes in Native American culture greatlyimpressed enlightened Europeans of the nineteenth century. It isa testament to the force of her will and her indomitable courage that herexample should be so overwhelmingly powerful to all women regardless ofrace or class. So I figuredout how to organize things" (8). Mankiller's assertion,regardless of its literal truth, is notable because it clearly demonstratesthe uphill nature of the battle that women must wage. According to Sharon Sievers, "we do not yet have a clear enoughidea of feminism as a set of ideas marked by time and place, as well ascontinuities...Until we do, it will be difficult to place feminists inhistory and to read some collective sense of the 'feminism of the age'"(Sievers 4 ). Somecontemporary scholars have noted that feminism is a movement without a realhistory. Wilma Mankiller led by example, and women today wouldbe well served to follow that example. The election proved to be abaptism by fire for Mankiller: "the only thing that people wanted to talkabout in 1983 was my being a woman. In its own way, that philosophy maycount as Mankiller's greatest legacy to all minority women. These words represent the crux ofMankiller's feminist legacy: she continued on, despite the intensepressure to quit that was heaped upon her. The work was published in 1877 and"heavily influenced Marx and the development of communism, particularlylending it the idea of the liberation of women from patriarchal dominance"(Gun Allen 22 ). This notion clearly shows just how far women in general stillhave to go to achieve true equality with men, especially considering thatNative Americans are undoubtedly the most discriminated against minority inthe country. Wilma Mankiller's accomplishment has many implications for thefeminist movement. Althoughher story may not be as well known as other women trailblazers, her life isa testament to the heights a woman can scale if she listens to her heartinstead of society. WORKS CITEDBowker, Ardy: Sisters in the Blood: The Education of Women in Native America, WEEA Publishing Center, Center for Bilingual/Multicultural Education, Montana State University, 1993.Gun Allen, Paula: The Sacred Hoop: Recovering The Feminine in American Indian Traditions, Beacon Press, Boston, 1992.Mankiller, Wilma: "Rebuilding the Cherokee Nation: Address to Sweetbriar College," Sweet Briar College, April 4, 1993.Mankiller, Wilma: Mankiller: A Chief and her People, St. Two shortyears later, Mankiller won the post outright in the tribal elections of1987, cementing her already illustrious place in the annals of twentieth-century feminism. Indeed, one of her favorite quotes has been:"I've run into more discrimination as a woman than as an Indian"(umkc.edu). To understand the impact that Wilma Mankiller had on feminism ingeneral, one must first explore the specifics of her rise to power withinthe Cherokee nation. In her bookMankiller, Wilma explores the Cherokee tribe's history from the earliestspoken record. In writing her story down for all the world to read, WilmaMankiller has also made a significant contribution to the history ofminority feminism, a facet of feminism that has been ignored for far toolong. A severe drought tempted her father, whowas struggling with feeding eleven mouths, to take advantage of the ill-conceived Bureau of Indian Affairs relocation program. Mankiller is confident that her example will open thedoor for more minority women to become active in deciding the future oftheir communities by running for office. This may be due to the fact that withinthe Native American community women are the glue that holds the tribe'sculture together. That is the beacon of hope that Mankiller displaysfor all those who gaze upon her. That was the most hurtful experienceI've ever been through" (Mankiller 9). Wilma Mankiller presents a vision of hope to all young minority womenwho long to be treated according to their character and not their gender.It is her most fervent hope that her election marks the beginning of a newera in Native American and minority women's participation in politics.There is an ancient Oneida prophesy called "the time of the butterfly" thatforesees a time when women take the reins of political power in NativeAmerican affairs. Wilma Mankiller represents a watershed moment in NativeAmerican politics in that her election as chief of the second-largest tribein the United States marks the turning point in Native women's politicalparticipation. But through it all shepersevered, in large part because she ignored the naysayers and thedoubters: "I thought that the idea that gender had anything to do withleadership, or that leadership had anything to do with gender was foolish,and I could see no point in...debate[ing] that non-issue with anybody, so Ijust continued on..." (Mankiller 1 ). Mankiller graduated high school and moved on to advancedstudies at the University of San Francisco (umkc.edu). Born in 1945 in Tahlequah, Oklahoma to a family thatincluded ten siblings in all, Mankiller grew up on a farm that had noindoor plumbing or electricity. She had to combat more than justverbal abuse, throughout the course of the election her tires were slashedand there were many death-threats (umkc.edu). In 1969 agroup of native students from San Francisco universities occupied Alcatrazin order to attract attention to the issues affecting their tribes.Mankiller views this seminal event as being the spark that lit the flame ofher political aspirations: "from that point on, I became very interestedand I acquired skills because I wanted to help my own people. Indeed,"the feminist idea of power as it ideally accrues to women may stem fromtribal sources" (Gun Allen 22 ). Thus, Wilma Mankiller persevered through incredibleadversity to win election as the chief of the Cherokee nation because sherefused to give in to the notion that sex has anything to do with one'sability to get the job done. In her bookMankiller attempts to put this new feminist history on display, and it isin this attempt that Mankiller transcends the genre. Historically, native women have had a vibrant place intheir society, working behind the scenes of most political action butnevertheless wielding large amounts of power within their tribes. An ethnographer of the periodnamed Lewis Henry Morgan wrote a book about the matriarchal nature of theIroquois Indians that was widely read. In the latter part of this paper we will concentrate on WilmaMankiller's contribution to the feminist movement at large. It was her desire to confrontthe issues that were burdening her people that swept her into power, notany long-standing ambition to lead. Historically granted near equal status in the tribe,nevertheless native women were forced to labor in the shadows of the menwho held the reins of power. Discriminated more for her womanhood thanher Indian blood, Wilma Mankiller truly rose above her so-called handicapsto capture the hearts and minds of young girls of all backgrounds andcallings. Throughout her political career Mankiller's main fixationwas getting things done. Significantstrides have been made towards gender-equality in the past century, withthe right to vote and the right to have an abortion signifying importantmilestones in the women's movement. In that fatefulyear Mankiller was asked by Ross Swimmer, the sitting Chief of the tribe,to run for office as his deputy (umkc.edu). She continued on because sheknew she could do the job, and that is the essence of the example her lifepresents to all feminists. Women were traditionally extremely active in town governments andthe tribal councils, and there is much oral evidence that a powerful"women's council" existed which counseled the Cherokee leaders on mattersof war and peace (2 7). Through their traditionally behind the scenes role inthe tribe, women perpetuate the traditional values and culture of thetribe. Wilma Mankiller's notable feat has implications that go beyond justNative American affairs. She outlines the role of the woman in traditional Cherokeesociety, a role which is far more significant than what has been thought.The Cherokee were traditionally matrilineal clans, and Cherokee women heldmost of the property and worked the farms while the men hunted (Mankiller(2) 19). And though the news is mostly good,there nevertheless remains a wide gulf in the way women and men are treatedin our society. Wilma Mankiller, formerPrincipal Chief of the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma, was one of the mostimportant women of the twentieth century and must arise as an example forwomen of any race to copy. The family tradedthe open air of Oklahoma for the crowded housing projects of San Francisco(Mankiller 8). According to Mankiller, "prior to myelection young Cherokee girls would never have thought they might grow upand become chief" (Mankiller 11). This fact is compounded by the deterioration of thefeminist movement from its peak in the nineteen-sixties. Mankiller creditsher experiences with the Native Americans in San Francisco as being a largeimpetus to her later career in tribal politics: "what kept us together, Ithink, as a family during that period of time was the Indian center, whichwas a place where many other families like ours, sort of refugees...sharedour experiences and tried to build a community" (Mankiller 8). That the issue hasbeen buried in the Cherokee nation is due entirely to Mankiller'sindomitable will and competency. But the greater implication was that Native women now had themeans and the example to overthrow their traditional role in the backgroundof tribal politics and stake an outright claim to the vessels of power.Ironically enough, women have always had a revered place in Native Americanpolitical culture. With Mankiller's election, Native Americanwomen for the first time realized that they too could have an active andvocal role in Tribal politics. To this end, she attributes her paradigm-shattering election in 1983 to her focus on the issues and her totalignoring of the gender issue as something that needed to be dealt with.Mankiller claims that she has always drawn strength from the saying "don'tever argue with a fool, because someone walking by and observing you can'ttell which one is the fool" (Mankiller 1 ). Even more significantly, her tenure asChief of the Cherokee nation marks an all important phase of the new modernhistory of minority feminism. First, her victory in the Cherokee nation paved the wayfor other Native American women of all tribes to increase theirparticipation in tribal politics. She notes that in 1991 she wonelection with a staggering majority of over eighty percent, a fact thatleads her to believe that "our people were saying that the issue of genderand doubts was at last buried" (Mankiller (2) 255). It was these formative years in theliberal and educated Native community in San Francisco that laid thegroundwork for Wilma Mankiller's rise to power. As young womenlook to the new millennium, it is important that they identify leaders toemulate and gather strength from their examples. Mankiller believes that these traditions have beendeliberately ignored by Western historians as being myth, and she angrilynotes that "an entire body ofknowledge can be dismissed because it was not written, while materialwritten by obviously biased men is readily accepted as reality. From the suffragettes of the early twentiethcentury to the "girlpower" divas of the new millennium, women havestruggled to carve out a voice and message of their own. Her storyseems to say that as long as you concentrate on the things important to youand persevere in the face of all ridicule and threats, that anything ispossible. In her words and her actions, Wilma Mankiller looms large in thehistory of twentieth century feminism as one of the most importanttrailblazers. The history of the women's rights movement is littered withtrailblazers who led the way before women believed they would achieve equalrights with men in society. Her election opened Native Americanwomen's eyes to the fact that they too have a voice in the electoralprocess. Her example calls out to other women thatif this form of political enlightenment is possible among the Cherokee, itis possible anywhere. If this paper is not what you are looking for, you can search again: Search for: or Click here to request an essay written just for you.