Maria Darlene Pearson, or Hai-Mecha Eunka "Running Moccasins", (July 12, 1932 – May 23, 2003) was a Yankton Dakota activist who successfully challenged the legal treatment of Native American human remains. She was one of the primary catalysts for the creation of the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA). Her actions led to her being called "the Founding Mother of the modern Indian repatriation movement" and "the Rosa Parks of NAGPRA".
The program features a discussion of Maria’s work and her life by friends and compatriots: David Gradwohl, anthropology emeritus professor at ISU; Jerome Thompson, State curator of historic sites and Director of the Iowa Historical Museum; Irma White of the Winnebago of Nebraska Nation, and Chris Adkins, Naturalist with the Dallas County Conservation board and member of the Beemis Moraine Tribe.
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Originally broadcast 10/24/2014
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