[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 51 (Thursday, March 18, 2021)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1654-S1655]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




     SENATE RESOLUTION 125--RECOGNIZING THE HERITAGE, CULTURE, AND 
 CONTRIBUTIONS OF AMERICAN INDIAN, ALASKA NATIVE, AND NATIVE HAWAIIAN 
                       WOMEN IN THE UNITED STATES

  Ms. MURKOWSKI (for herself, Mr. Schatz, Ms. Baldwin, Mr. Bennet, Mr. 
Blumenthal, Mr. Booker, Ms. Cantwell, Ms. Cortez Masto, Mr. Daines, Ms. 
Duckworth, Mr. Heinrich, Ms. Hirono, Mr. Hoeven, Mr. Kaine, Mr. Kelly, 
Mr. King, Ms. Klobuchar, Mr. Lujan, Mr. Moran, Mr. Menendez, Mr. 
Merkley, Mr. Padilla, Ms. Rosen, Mr. Rounds, Mr. Sanders, Mr. Schumer, 
Mrs. Shaheen, Ms. Sinema, Ms. Smith, Ms. Stabenow, Mr. Sullivan, Mr. 
Tester, Mr. Warner, Ms. Warren, and Mr. Wyden) submitted the following 
resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Indian Affairs:

                              S. Res. 125

       Whereas the United States celebrates National Women's 
     History Month every March to recognize and honor the 
     achievements of women throughout the history of the United 
     States;
       Whereas an estimated 3,081,000 American Indian, Alaska 
     Native, and Native Hawaiian women live in the United States;
       Whereas American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian 
     women helped shape the history of their communities, Tribes, 
     and the United States;
       Whereas American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian 
     women contribute to their communities, Tribes, and the United 
     States through military service, public service, and work in 
     many industries, including business, education, science, 
     medicine, literature, and fine arts;
       Whereas American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian 
     women have fought to defend and protect the sovereign rights 
     of Native Nations;
       Whereas American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian 
     women have demonstrated resilience and courage in the face of 
     a history of threatened existence, constant removals, and 
     relocations;
       Whereas more than 6,000 American Indian, Alaska Native, and 
     Native Hawaiian women bravely serve as members of the United 
     States Armed Forces;
       Whereas more than 17,000 American Indian, Alaska Native, 
     and Native Hawaiian women

[[Page S1655]]

     are veterans who have made lasting contributions to the 
     United States military;
       Whereas American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian 
     women broke down historical gender barriers to enlistment in 
     the military, including--
       (1) Inupiat Eskimo sharpshooter Laura Beltz Wright of the 
     Alaska Territorial Guard during World War II; and
       (2) Minnie Spotted Wolf of the Blackfeet Tribe, the first 
     Native American woman to enlist in the United States Marine 
     Corps in 1943;
       Whereas American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian 
     women have made the ultimate sacrifice for the United States, 
     including Lori Ann Piestewa, a member of the Hopi Tribe and 
     the first woman in the United States military killed in the 
     Iraq War in 2003;
       Whereas American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian 
     women have contributed to the economic development of Native 
     Nations and the United States as a whole, including Elouise 
     Cobell of the Blackfeet Tribe, a recipient of the 
     Presidential Medal of Freedom, who--
       (1) served as the treasurer of her Tribe;
       (2) founded the first Tribally owned national bank; and
       (3) led the fight against Federal mismanagement of funds 
     held in trust for more than 500,000 Native Americans;
       Whereas American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian 
     women own an estimated 154,900 businesses;
       Whereas these Native women-owned businesses employ more 
     than 50,000 workers and generate over $10,000,000,000 in 
     revenues as of 2016;
       Whereas American Indian and Alaska Native women have opened 
     an average of more than 17 new businesses each day since 
     2007;
       Whereas American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian 
     women have made significant contributions to the field of 
     medicine, including Susan La Flesche Picotte of the Omaha 
     Tribe, who is widely acknowledged as the first Native 
     American to earn a medical degree;
       Whereas American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian 
     women have contributed to important scientific advancements, 
     including--
       (1) Floy Agnes Lee of Santa Clara Pueblo, who--
          (A) worked on the Manhattan Project during World War II; 
     and
          (B) pioneered research on radiation biology and cancer;
       (2) Native Hawaiian Isabella Kauakea Yau Yung Aiona Abbott, 
     who--
          (A) was the first woman on the biological sciences 
     faculty at Stanford University; and
          (B) was awarded the highest award in marine botany from 
     the National Academy of Sciences, the Gilbert Morgan Smith 
     medal, in 1997; and
       (3) Mary Golda Ross of the Cherokee Nation, who--
          (A) is considered the first Native American engineer of 
     the National Aeronautic and Space Administration;
          (B) helped develop spacecrafts for the Gemini and Apollo 
     space programs; and
          (C) was recognized by the Federal Government on the 2019 
     $1 coin honoring Native Americans and their contributions;
       Whereas American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian 
     women have achieved distinctive honors in the art of dance, 
     including Maria Tall Chief of the Osage Nation, who was the 
     first major prima ballerina of the United States and was a 
     recipient of a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Kennedy 
     Center;
       Whereas American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian 
     women have accomplished notable literary achievements, 
     including Northern Paiute author Sarah Winnemucca Hopkins, 
     who wrote and published one of the first Native American 
     autobiographies in United States history in 1883;
       Whereas American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian 
     women have regularly led efforts to protect their traditional 
     ways of life and to revitalize and maintain Native cultures 
     and languages, including--
       (1) Tewa linguist and teacher Esther Martinez, who 
     developed a Tewa dictionary and was credited with 
     revitalizing the Tewa language;
       (2) Native Hawaiian scholar Mary Kawena Pukui, who 
     published more than 50 academic works and was considered the 
     most noted Hawaiian translator of the 20th century; and
       (3) Ahtna Athabascan Katie John of Mentasta Lake, who was 
     the lead plaintiff in lawsuits that strengthened Native 
     subsistence fishing rights in Alaska and who helped create 
     the alphabet for the Ahtna language;
       Whereas American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian 
     women have excelled in athletic competition and created 
     opportunities for other female athletes within their sport, 
     including Rell Kapoliokaehukai Sunn, who--
       (1) ranked as longboard surfing champion of the world; and
       (2) co-founded the Women's Professional Surfing Association 
     in 1975, the first professional surfing tour for women;
       Whereas American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian 
     women have played a vital role in advancing civil rights, 
     protecting human rights, advocating for land rights, and 
     safeguarding the environment, including--
       (1) Elizabeth Wanamaker Peratrovich of the Tlingit Nation, 
     who--
          (A) helped secure the passage of the Anti-Discrimination 
     Act of 1945 of the Alaska Territory, the first anti-
     discrimination law in the United States; and
          (B) was recognized by the Federal Government on the 2020 
     $1 coin honoring Native Americans and their contributions;
       (2) Zitkala-Sa, a Yankton Dakota writer and advocate, whose 
     work during the early 20th century helped advance the 
     citizenship, voting, and land rights of Native Americans; and
       (3) Mary Jane Fate of the Koyukon Athabascan village of 
     Rampart, who was the first woman to chair the Alaska 
     Federation of Natives, a founding member of the North 
     American Indian Women's Association, and an advocate for 
     settlement of Indigenous land claims in Alaska;
       Whereas American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian 
     women have succeeded as judges, attorneys, and legal 
     advocates, including Eliza ``Lyda'' Conley, a Wyandot-
     American lawyer and the first Native woman admitted to argue 
     a case before the Supreme Court of the United States in 1909;
       Whereas American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian 
     women have paved the way for women in the law, including 
     Native Hawaiian Emma Kailikapiolono Metcalf Beckley Nakuina, 
     who served as the first female judge in Hawaii;
       Whereas American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian 
     women are dedicated public servants, holding important 
     positions in the Federal judicial branch, the Federal 
     executive branch, State governments, and local governments;
       Whereas American Indian and Alaska Native women have served 
     as remarkable Tribal councilwomen, Tribal court judges, and 
     Tribal leaders, including Wilma Mankiller, who--
       (1) was the first woman elected to serve as Principal Chief 
     of the Cherokee Nation; and
       (2) fought for Tribal self-determination and the 
     improvement of the community infrastructure of her Tribe;
       Whereas American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian 
     women have also led their People through notable acts of 
     public service, including--
       (1) Kaahumanu, who was the first Native Hawaiian woman to 
     serve as regent of the Kingdom of Hawaii; and
       (2) Polly Cooper of the Oneida Indian Nation, who--
          (A) walked from central New York to Valley Forge as part 
     of a relief mission to provide food for the army led by 
     General George Washington during the American Revolutionary 
     War; and
          (B) was recognized for her courage and generosity by 
     Martha Washington;
       Whereas the United States should continue to invest in the 
     future of American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian 
     women to address the barriers they face, including access to 
     justice, health care, and opportunities for educational and 
     economic advancement; and
       Whereas American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian 
     women are the life givers, the culture bearers, and the 
     caretakers of Native peoples who have made precious 
     contributions, enriching the lives of all people of the 
     United States: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the Senate--
       (1) celebrates and honors the successes of American Indian, 
     Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian women and the 
     contributions they have made and continue to make to the 
     United States; and
       (2) recognizes the importance of supporting equity, 
     providing safety, and upholding the interests of American 
     Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian women.

                          ____________________