by Diane-Michele Prindeville
2002, 36 pages
Funding for this study was provided by a grant from the Center for American Women and Politics, Rutgers University. Diane-Michele Prindeville’s study explores the role of Southwestern Native American women leaders in tribal politics, and their right to participate equally with men in their nations’ governance. Using data from personal interviews with officials from 21 Indian nations in Arizona, New Mexico, Nevada, and Utah, she addresses the characteristics of women tribal leadership, the roles of those leaders, their goals and constraints. She believes that by studying the political participation of American Indian women leaders we can gain a greater understanding of their political goals, their contributions to their communities, and the conditions that lead to women’s equal and legitimate involvement in tribal politics.
