LaDonna Harris

LaDonna Vita Tabbytite Harris (born February 15, 1931) is a Comanche Native American social activist and politician from Oklahoma. She is the founder and president of Americans for Indian Opportunity. Harris was a vice presidential candidate for the Citizens Party in the 1980 United States presidential election alongside Barry Commoner. She was the first Native American woman to run for vice president. In 2018, she became one of the inductees in the first induction ceremony held by the National Native American Hall of Fame.

Early life Harris was born Ladonna Vita Tabbytite, in Temple, Oklahoma, to Lilly Tabbytite (Comanche) and Donald Crawford, a non-Native; the couple separated shortly after her birth. She was raised traditionally by her maternal grandparents in a self-governing Indigenous community on a farm near the small town of Walters, Oklahoma. She speaks Comanche as her first language. She learned English when she began attending public school. In 1949, shortly after graduating high school, she married Fred R. Harris, the white son of a son of a sharecropper. Ladonna followed and supported Fred through Law school, and became very involved in his campaign for U.S. Senate. In 1964, Fred Harris was elected to the U.S. Senate of Oklahoma, and the family, now with three children, relocated from Oklahoma to Washington, D.C.

Harris eventually left the NICO and founded the Americans for Indian Opportunity (AIO). Since the 1970s, she has presided over AIO, which works to "advance the cultural, political and economic rights of Indigenous peoples in the U.S. and around the world".

In the 1960s, Harris lived in Washington, D.C., and was in constant social and political contact with the top echelons of the Democratic Party, including President Lyndon B. Johnson and the First Lady. At the same time, her daughter Kathryn – at the time a university student - was deeply involved in the anti-war movement opposing the Vietnam War. Kathryn brought home other student activists to stay the night, and used the parental home as an unofficial headquarters where activists prepared for the next day's demonstrations and confrontations with police - with the tacit consent of her parents.

With the end of her husband's Congressional career, LaDonna Harris moved away from mainstream politics within the Democratic Party. In 1980, as the vice presidential nominee on the Citizens Party ticket with Barry Commoner, Harris added environmental issues to the national debate and future presidential campaigns.

Harris endorsed Bernie Sanders for president during the 2016 Democratic presidential primaries.

Community involvement Harris served on the boards of the Girl Scouts of the USA, Independent Sector, Council on Foundations, National Organization for Women, National Urban League, Save the Children, National Committee Against Discrimination in Housing, and Overseas Development Corporation.

Adoption of Johnny Depp After reading about the filming of the 2013 movie The Lone Ranger, and that Johnny Depp's reprisal of the role of 'Tonto' would be as a Comanche, Harris adopted Depp as an honorary son, making him an honorary member of her family but not an enrolled member of any tribe. She discussed the idea with her adult children, and they agreed. A unique adoption ceremony took place on May 16, 2012, at Harris's home in Albuquerque, New Mexico, attended by the cultural advisor for The Lone Ranger and an official from the tribe. Critical coverage of Depp in Indian Country increased after this, including satirical portrayals of Depp by Native comedians.

Americans for Indian Opportunity, founded by Harris, was consulted by Dior in relation to a 2019 ad for the fragrance "Sauvage", featuring Depp and Native American imagery. The ad was pulled on August 30, 2019, after charges of cultural appropriation and racism. Harris stated on August 30 that she was proud of the collaboration, but AIO released a statement on September 10 saying that it "deeply regrets" the choice.

Family life Harris has raised three children: Kathryn Tijerina is executive director of the Railyard Park Trust in Santa Fe; Byron is a technician in television production in Los Angeles; and Laura works with her mother as the executive director at AIO. Harris' grandson, Sam Fred Goodhope, calls her by the Comanche word for grandmother, Kaqu.

Filmography

Selected publications Harris, Ladonna; Margaret A. Fiore, and Jackie Wasilewski (1989). Overcoming Barriers to Effective Participation of Tribal Governments in the Federal System.