Lucy Friedlander Covington (November 24, 1910 – September 20, 1982) was a Native American tribal leader and political activist. She was a member of the Colville tribe which has a reservation in north-eastern

Washington state Washington, officially the State of Washington, is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is often referred to as Washington State to distinguish it from the national capital, both named after George Washington ...

. Covington was the granddaughter of the last Colville chief (

Chief Moses Chief Moses (born ''Kwiltalahun'', later called ''Sulk-stalk-scosum'' - "The Sun Chief") (c. 1829 – March 25, 1899) was a Native American chief of the Sinkiuse-Columbia, in what is now Washington state. The territory of his tribe extended ...

) to be acknowledged by the tribe. She was the daughter of Nellie Moses and Louis T. Friedlander Sr.

Political activism

In the 1950s, termination became the governmental policy when dealing with Indians, and officials were describing the procedure as "Indian emancipation from oppressive supervision." However, the reality of the situation was much darker because termination would entail the loss of tribal land which was essential to Colville and Native American Identity. When the termination bill for the Colville was proposed, Covington saw that her tribe was in danger of losing what she viewed as the Indian's most vital asset. Through the use of

self-determination Self-determination refers to a people's right to form its own political entity, and internal self-determination is the right to representative government with full suffrage. Self-determination is a cardinal principle in modern international la ...

, she waged a war on the government and the termination bill. One problem Covington faced from the beginning of her struggle was the fact that many tribal members thought that termination would be "modern and productive." She had been on the tribal council since 1956, and many other members favored termination. Instead of giving in to governmental pressure, Covington went to great lengths to protect tribal lands. She sold some of her cattle (a vital component of her livelihood considering she lived on a ranch) and used the money to fund her repeated trips to Washington, D.C. where she fought to prevent Senator

Henry M. Jackson Henry Martin "Scoop" Jackson (May 31, 1912 – September 1, 1983) was an American lawyer and politician who served as a U.S. representative (1941–1953) and U.S. senator (1953–1983) from the state of Washington (state), Washington. A Cold W ...

of Washington from passing the termination bill. Covington utilized unique methods and strategies to gain support for her cause. With her magnetic personality, she organized younger members in the tribe to assist in her efforts and even helped create a Colville newspaper titled Our Heritage. This helped raise awareness for her campaign and also stood as a dedication to Indian culture. Whenever a tribal council member would present an outline for termination to Congress, Covington protested, and in 1968 she created an anti-termination platform for the tribal election. She enlisted the help of the

Menominee The Menominee ( ; meaning ''"Menominee People"'', also spelled Menomini, derived from the Ojibwe language word for "Wild Rice People"; known as ''Mamaceqtaw'', "the people", in the Menominee language) are a federally recognized tribe of Na ...

leader Jim White to speak to her tribe about the actual effects of termination. After all of her lobbying, anti-termination advocates won a majority of the seats in the election. Covington had successfully changed her tribal

mindset A mindset refers to an established set of attitudes of a person or group concerning culture, values, philosophy, frame of reference, outlook, or disposition. It may also arise from a person's worldview or beliefs about the meaning of life. Som ...

, and the new council stamped out the termination bill for good in 1971. This started a new era, as tribal capitals were able to use their sovereignty to reverse decisions made by Washington. Through individual activism and determination, Covington helped keep Colville tribal sovereignty intact, and her persistence halted the liquidation and dismemberment of the Colville Reservation.

Fighting termination

After the termination struggle, Covington "worked with characteristic determination to protect tribal rights and resources, develop tribal services, govern the reservation for the benefit of tribe members, and promote inter-tribal cooperation." Not only was she an example of Native American self-determination in action, but she was also a founder of the movement itself. Her efforts (along with

Ada Deer Ada Elizabeth Deer (August 7, 1935 – August 15, 2023) was an American scholar and civil servant who was a member of the Menominee Indian Tribe of Wisconsin and a Native American advocate. As an activist she opposed the federal termination of ...

and other civil rights leaders) engendered a shift of U.S. policy from termination to independence and autonomy.

Death

In 1982, when she was seventy-one years old, Lucy Covington died of

pulmonary fibrosis Pulmonary fibrosis is a condition in which the lungs become scarred over time. Symptoms include shortness of breath, a dry cough, feeling tired, weight loss, and nail clubbing. Complications may include pulmonary hypertension, respiratory ...

The Lucy Covington Center

In 2015, Eastern Washington University decided to build the Lucy Covington center to honor and remember her powerful activism. It serves as a place to educate and cultivate young Native Americans into future leaders to follow in Lucy's footsteps.

References

* Charles F. Wilkinson, ''Blood Struggle: The Rise of Modern Indian Nations'' (New York: W. W. Norton & Company, 2006) 180–81 * Covington, Lucy Friedlander (1910–1982) – HistoryLink.org {{DEFAULTSORT:Covington, Lucy 1910 births 1982 deaths Native American activists 20th-century Washington (state) politicians Deaths from pulmonary fibrosis 20th-century American women 20th-century American people 20th-century Native American women 20th-century Native American leaders Activists from Washington (state) Colville people