This story was originally published by ICT and is republished here with permission.
Blackfeet activist, banker, mother and trailblazer Elouise Cobell, who died in 2011, led a nearly 13-year-long fight for fairness and accountability from the federal government after it was discovered withholding funds from 300,000 account holders who had their monies held in trust by the Bureau of Indian Affairs.
Her efforts were responsible for almost $3.5 billion in repayments across Indian Country, the largest settlement ever against the U.S. government. Some funds from the settlement were reserved for the Cobell Scholarship, an organization created to help provide funding for American Indian students seeking financial support in higher education.
Under the Obama administration, she was posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom, and earlier this year the Indigenous pioneer was inducted into the National Women’s Hall of Fame.
In 2015, former Montana Gov. Steve Bullock proclaimed November 5 as Elouise Cobell Day.
Eight years later, former lawmakers, lawyers that helped Cobell in the initial lawsuit, and her son spoke with ICT about her legacy as an Indigenous leader who fought for government accountability at the national level.
“Elouise is a heroine to many, many people and me included,” said Denise Juneau, Mandan Hidatsa and Blackfeet, former Montana superintendent for public instruction.
“What I like about her is that she always made time for mentorship and advice giving, despite how busy she was with her community work and this lawsuit that she was carrying against the federal government,” she said.
Juneau reminisced back on her last conversation with Cobell, sharing how she thought Cobell’s efforts have been woven into the fabric of the nation, shaping American history.
“There was a strong sense of a Native woman persevering and being strong and to never give up. And that’s sort of the message I got out of that last visit with her,” said Juneau.
Lea Whitford, Blackfeet, along with Juneau, recalled a moment during Cobell’s funeral where she was left with a heavy question.
“What can we do as Native women to make sure we are always involved?” Whitford asked Juneau.
That’s when Juneau recommended Whitford run for public office, and she went on to be elected as a state senator, representing part of the Blackfeet Nation.
In 2015, Whitford introduced a bill to establish Elouise Cobell Day. After the Montana Legislature failed to pass it, Gov. Bullock’s proclamation ensured that Montana would honor Cobell and her legacy.
“She is a strong Blackfeet woman and I hope we can continue to tell her story to future generations,” Whitford said.
It’s a story of persistence and determination in fighting for the rights of the communities she represented.
“I think she’s very deserving of being admitted into that Hall of Fame posthumously,” said John Echohawk, Pawnee, the executive director of the Native American Rights Fund, which represented Cobell in the class-action lawsuit.
“It’s really a recognition that’s well-deserved because, again, she led to the resolution of one of the major issues across Indian Country, and that’s the enforcement of the federal government’s trust responsibility. She got it done,” he told ICT.
Echohawk explained how impactful Cobell’s settlement was, saying the general public didn’t really understand the government’s trust responsibility to tribes. He added it’s important for not only Indian Country but for the nation to remember her work.
“She had seen how they had mismanaged the trust funds of her Blackfeet Tribe, and then all of the individual money account holders who have allotments up there … she was just determined to finally get the federal government to do what it was supposed to do as trustee and where she really persisted and ultimately prevailed,” Echohawk said.
Turk Cobell, son of Elouise Cobell, shared his reaction to her posthumous induction into the National Women’s Hall of Fame.
“I was able to do some research on [the National Women’s Hall of Fame} and the more I researched, the more I understood what a big deal and tremendous honor this was for my mother to be inducted with this group of women who essentially have changed the direction of this country,” he said.
Turk hopes this national recognition will continue to educate and inspire all generations, showing that they too have the ability to make a difference in their communities and at the national level.
“I hope that in the minds of older and younger Native Americans across this country, they can see that ordinary people can do extraordinary things throughout their lives and change the lives of others,” he said. “Whether it be through an act of kindness or literally through an act of Congress, it is possible, and I hope that that legacy of hers lives on.”
