Barbara is one of Mary’s sisters; she’s the sibling that Mary feels closest to, because they shared many life experiences. Barbara, like Mary, was an activist with the American Indian Movement (AIM) and followed AIM around the country. Barbara’s experience as a Lakota woman is riddled with instances of racism and sexism, often both at the same time. Like her mother, Barbara was sterilized against her will after giving birth to her child, who died only two hours after birth. This atrocity reflects the U.S. government’s ongoing genocide against Native Americans. Barbara was also the victim of sexual harassment; Mary recounts a story where a group of white men shouted crude and racist comments at her. Through Barbara’s experiences, Mary stresses that “It’s hard being an Indian woman.”
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Barbara Character Timeline in Lakota Woman
The timeline below shows where the character Barbara appears in Lakota Woman. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 1: A Woman from He-Dog
When Mary’s sister Barbara went to a government hospital to give birth, the providers sterilized her while she was...
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Chapter 3: Civilize Them with a Stick
Mary and her older sister Barbara attended boarding school at the same time. Both of them received beatings from the nuns,...
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Chapter 4: Drinking and Fighting
...got drunk was with relatives at a party. Throughout her drinking days, Mary’s older sister Barbara did her best to look out for her, sometimes taking away Mary’s cigarettes and alcohol....
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Chapter 5: Aimlessness
...Mary’s mother had strict Christian beliefs, and she was apprehensive of her friends’ judgment. When Barbara got pregnant in high school, Mary’s mother told Barbara that she was disowning her; later,...
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...to. Drinking and drug usage was common among these groups: Mary liked smoking pot, and Barb took a lot of acid. Mary now sees that there was an “emptiness underneath all...
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...attitude toward the women, simply expecting the women to have sex with them on request. Barb and Mary didn’t appreciate this attitude—both of them wanted more commitment in their sexual relationships.
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...for the trial of some AIM (American Indian Movement) members, some white men sexually harassed Barb while she was walking to a motel parking lot. She ran back into the motel...
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Chapter 6: We AIM Not to Please
...birth control, as they wanted to increase the Native American population. Not everyone agreed. When Barb went to a government hospital to have her baby, the doctors performed a hysterectomy on...
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Chapter 11: Birth Giving
...not trust white doctors—she could never forget how white doctors had sterilized her older sister, Barbara—but she also wanted to follow Native American traditions.
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