The Barometer Online

Issue date: 3/8/07 Section: News

Media Credit: Molly Whiteside [Click to enlarge]

Winona LaDuke's lecture "Politics, Motherhood and Environmental Justice" filled the LaSells Stewart Center on Wednesday. This internationally recognized Native American activist, environmentalist and author delivered her message of activism and choice through personal stories of her tribe, the Anishinaabeg-Objibwe (sometimes known as the Chippewa).

She is also a two-time vice presidential candidate on the Green Party ticket with Ralph Nader, running in 1996 and 2000.

The speaker gave a greeting to the audience in her native language. The entire lecture consisted of personal stories involving LaDuke and her tribe on the White Earth reservation in Minnesota, but the issues affecting that small community are global, she said.

The audience was filled with students and community members; there was not a single empty seat left and many sat on the floor to listen.

Some people, like Miriam Chandhary, a senior majoring in industrial engineering, came to the lecture simply because she found the topic interesting. Others, like Emily Ferris, an anthropology student, were familiar with her work and found it relevant to their studies.

The event was sponsored by the Women's Center, Native American Collaborative Institute and the Indian Education office.

"We decided to invite her as a speaker because she has been a prominent social justice activist for nearly three decades, and why not invite a strong woman leader such as Winona?" said Heather Ebba Maib, activism and outreach coordinator for the Women's Center.

"Democracy is not a spectator sport," LaDuke said. This mother of three and Harvard graduate, founding director of the White Earth Land Recovery project and winner of many prestigious awards, is driven by her family and heritage.

Issues of corporate greed, environmental decay, and federal land regulations were tied into stories of LaDuke's effort to raise her children.

"What I do, it's not activism. I call it responsible parenting," LaDuke said.

"I teach my kids not to steal. I think that's a familiar lesson in our society," LaDuke said. "But how am I suppose to teach my kids that when my people's land was taken away, and now 90 percent of it is controlled by the federal government?"

Continued...

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