Honoring Madonna Thunder Hawk: 50th Anniversary of the ‘We Will Remember’ Survival School
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Marcella Gilbert: But what I’m asking you, if there’s one thing you want to say. Say to my mom (Madonna) or Uncle Ted, because Mom (Madonna) and Uncle Ted were like the parents to all of us. They were always there. They always took care of us. They were always teaching us and protecting us.
Keith Janis: That beautiful woman right there. Wicahpi Luta Win (Red Star Woman – Madonna Thunder Hawk). Thank you for being really a beacon in my life. I can’t say that enough, because you have been, and kicked some ass all across this world. And I’ll always respect that. So. Wopila.
Kate Thunder Hawk: And being a kid, growing up, seeing my aunties who filled me with pride, made me feel good. And every time we stood up against the cops and the aunties and uncles got out there and stood up to them, that gave me heart for today. Pilamiya, auntie.
James Iron Shell: You know, Madonna opened her home, along with Ted (Means), and never turned anybody away. And even when it was tough, she always found a way to make it happen. Madonna used to be the one that, she would tell us things, and you know how she talks. She could get you on it, you know. She would tell us things, but she would make us think about what it was that she was telling us. And she didn’t make us learn it—she would explain it and let us discover for ourselves what the true meaning was and what it meant to each one of us. So I want to thank you for that, for being that way, being a caring person.
Lakota Harden: That’s the thing with our people. That was the basis of who we were as Lakota. Forgiving, generous. And so that’s what we learned. We learned that with each other because we went through it. It wasn’t all, you know, Kumbaya-ey. We had our fights, especially around dishes. But that’s what we learned. We were responsible. So we tried to know better. We tried to be our best. So we just wanted to say that much to you, auntie. Wopila Tanka.
Lisa Bellanger: My mother, Patricia Bellanger, who’s on this, as my little brother said, was a big part of that movement in the Minnesota, the eastern half. And I had the honor of traveling with my mother, to be able to listen to her and Madonna in cahoots. They planned a revolution, let me tell you, like none other. But it’s the work of these women, you know, like Liz earlier as well, that showed us how we needed to be, what we needed to do. When we gathered, these women worked together through W.A.R.N. (Women of All Red Nations), through AIM, through Treaty Council. She would get us together and, like you heard earlier, how she helped to educate us, to lay it out on the floor and then made us turn around and research. And she said, the only thing you’re going to do to make change is, you need to educate. So your work is still—it still has a huge impact and it’s still flowing into the future. Those teachings and all that work that you did, and all the love, you know, you heard about that here.
Monique “Muffie” Mousseau: : This woman here, she stepped into our first ever Native American Two-Spirit Powwow here in Rapid City, and her and Mabel Ann danced at our first ever Native American Two-Spirit Powwow. And we give you great honor. We went to her house, and I was so scared. I was so scared to walk in. She had all these dogs, way out in the middle of nowhere. I’m like, “oh my god, what’s going to happen, Chuck?” And we’re with the white guy, you know? Then I walk in and, you know, she greets us and hugs us and gives us coffee. Welcomes us in and sits down in her house. And that was the most joyous revelation of my life. She showed us the strength of our people, which is compassion in our heart.
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