The Leadership of Indigenous Women

The Leadership of Indigenous Women. The Sea Connects Us.

"Hannah Miller, aged about 61, on reservation with her children." , - 1858 Census of the Mashantucket Pequot Tribe

, The arrival, settlement, and colonization of this area by Europeans in the 17th century displaced Native peoples and introduced a new system of land ownership and a new economic system that disrupted traditional Indigenous lifeways. No longer living a seasonal subsistence pattern of enjoying coastal resources in warmer months and moving inland for the winter, many Mashantucket Pequot men took advantage of economic opportunities in the maritime industries at Mystic and other nearby port towns to find work at sea, which separated them from their families for weeks or even years at a time. This left elder women, such as Hannah Miller, to deal with tribal politics and act as chiefs to represent the interests of the reservation. Unfortunately, the political leadership of women was not respected among Euro American communities and the absence of men from Indigenous communities to earn a livelihood at sea reinforced Euro American notions of "disappearing Indians.", [Caption:] , Glasier, F.W. Silver gelatin photographic print. Wootonekanuske. Indigenous woman posed as Wootenekanuske, the wife of Metacomet (King Philip), 1924. Courtesy of the Library of Congress.