The next quarter honoring iconic women in American history will feature Wilma Mankiller.
A woman with an interesting and unique name, Mankiller was the first woman to be elected chief of a major North American tribe, CNBC reported.
Mankiller refers to a Cherokee military rank as a captain or major, the National Women’s History Museum reported.
She earned the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1998 from former President Bill Clinton.
“She was not only the guardian of the centuries-old Cherokee heritage, but a revered leader who built a brighter and healthier future of her nation,” Clinton said at the time, according to CNBC.
While she was living at the Cherokee Nation’s capital of Tahlequah, Oklahoma, Mankiller moved to San Francisco by the age of 11, the museum reported. But she said it was “my own little Trail of Tears” because she left the tribe and her grandfather’s farm.
in 1969 she was inspired to fight for the rights of Native Americans after seeing a group occupying Alcatraz Island to protest how Native Americans were treated by the federal government, CNBC reported.
She wrote about that time in her 1993 autobiography “Mankiller: A Chief and Her People,” saying, “When Alcatraz occurred, I became aware of what needed to be done to let the rest of the world know that Indians had rights, too. Alcatraz articulated my own feelings about being an Indian.”
She eventually moved back to her grandfather’s Oklahoma farm where she became active in the tribe, working with the young members and creating new housing and water access.
Mankiller was tapped by then chief, Ross Swimmer, as his running mate. During the campaign, she was the target of hate mail and death threats, but despite that, the ticket won and she was the first female deputy chief of Cherokee Nation.
Two years later , Swimmer stepped down and she became chief. She then won reelection twice.
Mankiller died in 2010 at 64 from pancreatic cancer. President Barack Obama remembered her by saying, “As the Cherokee Nation’s first female chief, she transformed the Nation-to-Nation relationship between the Cherokee Nation and the Federal Government and served as an inspiration to women in Indian Country and across America. A recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom, she was recognized for her vision and commitment to a brighter future for all Americans. Her legacy will continue to encourage and motivate all who carry on her work.”
According to the U.S. Mint, Mankiller’s coin will feature her wrapped in a traditional shawl. Next to her will be the seven-pointed star of the Cherokee Nation. The words “principal chief” will also be written in Cherokee syllabary.
Wilma Mankiller, first female principal chief of the Cherokee Nation, to be honored on U.S. quarter https://t.co/XLNMeLl5Zj pic.twitter.com/KXSz4rmDSD
— CBS News (@CBSNews) January 11, 2022
The quarter proof set containing all five American Women Quarter Coins went on sale on March 8. Mankiller’s quarter will be released this Spring, the Mint said.
Other coins in the series include ones dedicated to writer Maya Angelou, astronaut Dr. Sally Ride, New Mexico suffragist Nina Otero-Warren and Chinese American actor Anna May Wong.
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