Ada Deer (1935–2023), Menominee leader and advocate
by
by
2 min readAda Deer was a leader of the Menominee Nation who advocated for the rollback of “Termination Era” policies and was later appointed as the first woman to head the U.S. Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA).
- Died: August 15, 2023 (Who else died on August 15?)
- Details of death: Died in hospice care at the age of 88.
- We invite you to share condolences for Ada Deer in our Guest Book.
Ada Deer’s legacy
Born in Keshena, Wisconsin as part of the Menominee Indian Tribe, Deer devoted her life to advocating for Native American people. She attended the University of Wisconsin–Madison and the New York School of Social Work (part of Columbia University), from which she earned a master’s in social work, then became a Menominee social worker in the Minneapolis area.
From the 1950s to the 1970s, Deer played a key role in helping fight against the rollback of Native American land rights in the region. A corporate body assumed control of the Menominee tribe in 1961, but thanks to the work of Deer and others, in 1973, President Richard Nixon repealed the policies of the so-called “Termination Era” and restored rights back to the tribe.
In the 1990s, Deer was appointed Assistant Secretary of the Interior by President Bill Clinton and became the first woman to head the BIA. She was also a delegate to the United Nations Human Rights Committee and served as Chair of the National Indian Gaming Commission. Over the course of her life, Deer also ran several unsuccessful political campaigns, including runs for Secretary of State of Wisconsin and for Congress. In 2003, she was among 51 accomplished educators profiled in the book “Celebrating Social Work: Faces and Voices of the Formative Years.”
Notable quote
“People are always criticizing you no matter what you do. I just did what I thought was right. And a lot of people came along with me.”—from a 2018 speech at the University of Wisconsin
Tributes to Ada Deer
Full obituary: Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
TAGS
