Wilma Mankiller’s journey into leadership in the Cherokee nation was not planned. She started as an advocate for rural development within her community, gradually rising through the ranks of Cherokee leadership.
In the 1980s she was the first woman elected to Principal Chief.
Her 1993 autobiography, Mankiller, gave her the opportunity to fill a void of knowledge about ANative American history and culture.
Her story, as she recountss in this interview, was not only one of personal resilience but also a testament to the strength of Native American communities.
So here now, from 1993, Wilman Mankiller.
Wilma Mankiller was awarded the nation’s highest civilian honor, the Presidential Medal of Freedom. And in 2022 her likeness appeared on the quarter-dollar coin minted by the U.S. Treasury.
Mankiller died from pancreatic cancer in 2010. She was 64.
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