Mona Polacca

Mona Polacca is a Native American spiritual elder from Arizona. She has worked to further social justice for indigenous people from an early age. She is an author in the field of social sciences, has held posts of responsibility as Treasurer for her tribe, served on several committees for Indigenous Peoples within the United Nations. and is widely known for her "leadership in the Native American revitalisation movement."

In recent years, Mona has gained international recognition for her work as one of the International Council of 13 Indigenous Grandmothers – a group of spiritual elders, medicine women and wisdom keepers founded in 2004.

In 2021, she joined the Center for Earth Ethics at Union Theological Seminary (New York City) as a senior fellow for the Original Caretakers Program.

Early years Mona became interested in indigenous social justice at the age of 14 when she first heard about the occupation of Alcatraz Island by a Native American group called Indians of All Tribes in 1969. Although Mona was only 14 years old she wanted to visit the island and was allowed to do so by her parents.

She has been part of the Native American Church since 1978. Serving on United Nations committees on indigenous people's issues.

As of 2013, she was working on a Ph.D. in the Interdisciplinary Justice Studies department at Arizona State University.

The International Council of 13 Grandmothers

In 2004, Mona was approached by The Center for Sacred Studies to serve on the International Council of 13 Indigenous Grandmothers. Grandmother Mona is the youngest of the 13 Grandmothers

On April 8, 2021 she delivered a lecture via zoom about the Indigenous Grandmother’s Council for the University of Redlands NSP.

Works

Bletzer, Keith V., Nicole P. Yuan, Mary P. Koss, Mona Polacca, Emery R. Eaves, and David Goldman. "Taking Humor Seriously: Talking about Drinking in Native American Focus Groups." Medical anthropology 30, no. 3 (2011): 295–318. Polacca, Mona. "NATIVE AMERICANS." Age Through Ethnic Lenses: Caring for the Elderly in a Multicultural Society (2001): 113. Nicole P. Yuan, Mary P. Koss, Mona Polacca, and David Goldman, “Risk Factors for Physical Assault and Rape among Six Native American Tribes,” Journal of Interpersonal Violence 21, no. 12 (2006): 1566–90