Charmaine White Face, or Zumila Wobaga, is an Oglala Tetuwan (
Lakota language
Lakota ( ), also referred to as Lakhota, Teton or Teton Sioux, is a Siouan language spoken by the Lakota people of the Sioux tribes. Lakota is mutually intelligible with the two dialects of the Dakota language, especially Western Dakota, and i ...
speaker) from the
Oceti Sakowin
The Sioux or Oceti Sakowin (; Dakota language, Dakota: Help:IPA, /otʃʰeːtʰi ʃakoːwĩ/) are groups of Native Americans in the United States, Native American tribes and First Nations in Canada, First Nations peoples in North America. The ...
(
Great Sioux Nation
The Great Sioux Nation is the traditional political structure of the Sioux in North America. The peoples who speak the Sioux language are considered to be members of the Oceti Sakowin (''Očhéthi Šakówiŋ'', pronounced ) or Seven Council Fire ...
) in
North America
North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...
.
She is known for her work in support of
Native American rights, in particular as coordinator of the
Defenders of the Black Hills, a volunteer
environmental organization
An environmental organization is an organization coming out of the conservation or environmental movements
that seeks to protect, analyse or monitor the environment against misuse or degradation from human forces.
In this sense the environment ...
centered on efforts to encourage the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
government to honor the Fort Laramie Treaties of
1851
Events
January–March
* January 11 – Hong Xiuquan officially begins the Taiping Rebellion.
* January 15 – Christian Female College, modern-day Columbia College, receives its charter from the Missouri General Assembly.
...
and
1868
Events
January–March
* January 2 – British Expedition to Abyssinia: Robert Napier leads an expedition to free captive British officials and missionaries.
* January 3 – The 15-year-old Mutsuhito, Emperor Meiji of Jap ...
.
She also works at the international level in support of recognition of human rights of indigenous peoples all over the world.
She is the spokesperson for the
Sioux Nation
The Great Sioux Nation is the traditional political structure of the Sioux in North America. The peoples who speak the Sioux language are considered to be members of the Oceti Sakowin (''Očhéthi Šakówiŋ'', pronounced ) or Seven Council Fir ...
Treaty Council
established in 1894.
She was a participant in the prayer fast/hunger strike held in December 2004 in Geneva, Switzerland at the final meeting of the Intersessional Working Group on the Draft Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (WGDD). She has worked to preserve
Bear Butte
Bear Butte is a geological laccolith feature located near Sturgis, South Dakota, United States, that was established as a State Park in 1961. An important landmark and religious site for the Plains Indians tribes long before Europeans reached Sout ...
,
on monitoring of abandoned
uranium mines
Uranium production is carried out in about 13 countries around the world, in 2017 producing a cumulative total of 59,462 tonnes of uranium (tU). The international producers were Kazakhstan (39%), Canada (22%), Australia (10%), Namibia (7.1%), Nig ...
, on "
environmental remediation
Environmental remediation deals with the removal of pollution or contaminants from environmental media such as soil, groundwater, sediment, or surface water. Remedial action is generally subject to an array of regulatory requirements, and may al ...
of
hazardous waste ponds," and in the
anti-nuclear power movement. In Jan. 2013, she raised concerns about
radiation exposure
Radiation is a moving form of energy, classified into ionizing and non-ionizing type. Ionizing radiation is further categorized into electromagnetic radiation (without matter) and particulate radiation (with matter). Electromagnetic radiation con ...
of
South Dakota Army National Guard
The South Dakota National Guard is part of the South Dakota Department of Military & Veterans Affairs. It was created in 1862 as the State Militia. Its headquarters is located in Rapid City, South Dakota.
It consists of the South Dakota Army Natio ...
soldiers in the
Buffalo Gap National Grassland
Buffalo Gap National Grassland is a National Grassland located primarily in southwestern South Dakota, United States. It is also the second largest National Grassland, after Little Missouri National Grassland in North Dakota. Characteristics of t ...
.
Charmaine White Face is also a columnist and freelance writer who has written for ''
Indian Country Today
''ICT News'' (formerly known as ''Indian Country Today'') is a daily digital news platform that covers the Indigenous world, including American Indians, Alaska Natives and First Nations.
It was founded in 1981 as a weekly print newspaper, ''The ...
'', the ''
Rapid City Journal
The ''Rapid City Journal'' (formerly the ''Black Hills Journal'' and the ''Rapid City Daily Journal'') is the daily newspaper of Rapid City, South Dakota. As of 2021, it is the largest newspaper in South Dakota by total subscriptions, according ...
'', the Sioux Falls ''
Argus Leader
The ''Argus Leader'' is the daily newspaper of Sioux Falls, South Dakota. Owned by Gannett, it was the state's largest newspaper by total circulation until 2021 when it was surpassed by the ''Rapid City Journal'', according to statistics from the ...
'', and ''The Lakota Journal'', and is a grandmother.
See also
*
Black Hills
The Black Hills ( lkt, Ȟe Sápa; chy, Moʼȯhta-voʼhonáaeva; hid, awaxaawi shiibisha) is an isolated mountain range rising from the Great Plains of North America in western South Dakota and extending into Wyoming, United States. Black Elk P ...
*
Janet McCloud
Janet McCloud (also known as Yet-Si-Blue; March 30, 1934 – November 25, 2003) was a prominent Native American and indigenous rights activist. Her activism helped lead to the 1974 Boldt Decision, for which she was dubbed "the Rosa Parks of th ...
*
Uranium in the environment
Uranium in the environment refers to the science of the sources, environmental behaviour, and effects of uranium on humans and other animals. Uranium is weakly radioactive and remains so because of its long physical half-life (4.468 billion years ...
*
Anti-nuclear movement in the United States
The anti-nuclear movement in the United States consists of more than 80 anti-nuclear groups that oppose nuclear power, nuclear weapons, and/or uranium mining. These have included the Abalone Alliance, Clamshell Alliance, Committee for Nuclear Re ...
*''
The Navajo People and Uranium Mining
''The Navajo People and Uranium Mining'' (2006) is a non-fiction book edited by Doug Brugge, Timothy Benally, and Esther Yazzie-Lewis; it uses oral histories to tell the stories of Navajo Nation families and miners in the uranium mining industry ...
''
*
Uranium mining debate
The uranium mining debate covers the political and environmental controversies of uranium mining for use in either nuclear power or nuclear weapons.
Background and public debate
As of 2009, in terms of uranium production, Kazakhstan was the la ...
*
Thomas Banyacya
Thomas Banyacya, Sr. (June 2, 1909 – February 6, 1999) was a Hopi Native Americans in the United States, Native American traditional leader.
Biography
Thomas Banyacya was born on June 2, 1909 and grew up in the village of Moenkopi, Arizo ...
References
External links
Defenders of the Black Hills- video of interview with Charmaine White Face
Sacred Land, Poisoned Peoples; the Pre-Congress report at the 19th Annual IPPNW Conference, Basel Switzerland*
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:White Face, Charmaine
American human rights activists
Women human rights activists
Native American activists
Oglala people
Black Hills
People from the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, South Dakota
Living people
Year of birth missing (living people)
Anti-uranium activists
Uranium mining
21st-century American women
21st-century Native American women
21st-century Native Americans