"Sacred activism": The International Council of Thirteen Indigenous Grandmothers

The International Council of Thirteen Indigenous Grandmothers--composed of healers ranging in age from fifty-seven to eighty-six and located in Alaska; North, South, and Central America; Africa; and Asia--practice what they describe as "sacred activism" to counteract colonialism's negative impact on indigenous people, the inhabitants of our global community, and the earth. Through an analysis of The Grandmothers' words and actions, as well as recent scholarship on indigenous issues, I develop a theory of "sacred activism" and argue that this activism, grounded in a worldview of interrelatedness, can be utilized to bring about healing and develop what Gregory Cajete might describe as "cosmological reorientation" in our globaLcommunity. My goal is to demonstrate the important contributions The Grandmothers' sacred activism makes to contemporary life.

Name thesis:degree_name

Master of Arts

Level thesis:degree_level

Master

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Women's Studies

Grantor

Texas Woman's University

Year dc:date.issued

2012

Author dc:creator

• McNeal, Frances Reanae

Chair dc:contributor.committeechair

• Keating, AnaLouise, 1961-

Committee member dc:contributor.committeemember

• Sahlin, Claire L. (Claire Lynn), 1961-

• Sacred activism
• Indigenous issues
• Postcolonialism
• Decolonialism

Language dc:language.iso

en_US

Handle dc:identifier.uri

http://hdl.handle.net/11274/10034

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:twu-ir.tdl.org:11274/10034