Standing Bear of the Ponca

by Virginia Driving Hawk Sneve

Overview

For Ages 8 and up

Imagine having to argue in court that you are a person. Yet this is just what Standing Bear, of the Ponca Indian tribe, did in Omaha in 1879. And because of this trial, the law finally said that an Indian was indeed a person, with rights just like any other American.

Standing Bear of the Ponca tells the story of this historic leader, from his childhood education in the ways and traditions of his people to his trials and triumphs as chief of the Bear Clan of the Ponca tribe. Most harrowing is the winter trek on which Standing Bear led his displaced people, starving and sick with malaria, back to their homeland—only to be arrested by the U.S. government, which set the stage for his famous trial. Standing Bear’s story is also the story of a changing America, when the Ponca, like so many Indian tribes, felt the pressure of pioneers looking to settle the West. Standing Bear died in 1908, but his legacy and influence continue even up to the present. 
 

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780803228269
Publisher:	Bison Original
Publication date:	10/01/2013
Pages:	56
Product dimensions:	6.80(w) x 10.00(h) x 0.40(d)
Age Range:	13 - 17 Years

About the Author

Virginia Driving Hawk Sneve is of Ponca and Sioux descent and the recipient of the National Humanities Medal. Her many books include The Trickster and the Troll, When Thunders Spoke, and Lana’s Lakota Moons, all available in Bison Books editions. Thomas Floyd is an artist working in a variety of media from painting to illustration to comic strips and is a graphic designer at Nebraska Educational Telecommunications.

Table of Contents

Introduction
1. Standing Bear, the Boy
2. The Tribe
3. Change
4. Indian Territory
5. The Move
6. Friends
7. The Trial
8. Home
9. After Standing Bear
Timeline
Glossary
Suggested Reading

Editorial Reviews

“Virginia Driving Hawk Sneve has told a terribly important, complex story of what it means to be human—to be a father, a leader, a civil rights hero—in simple, powerful, unadorned language accessible to one and all, but especially to children.”—Joe Starita, author of “I Am a Man”: Chief Standing Bear’s Journey for Justice

Joe Starita

"Standing Bear of the Ponca is first rate Native American biography material."—Children's Bookwatch

Children's Bookwatch

“Finally we have a children’s book that tells the story of the Ponca people who were for so long a forgotten tribe and presents an Indian hero for teachers to use in the classroom. Sneve captures the unique richness of being Indian and the challenges faced in a changing America as Standing Bear’s life evolves. Students will be inspired to find their own heroes through the universal themes of the love of family and home as we celebrate Standing Bear’s journey home.”—Judi M. gaiashkibos, an enrolled member of the Ponca tribe of Nebraska and executive director of the Nebraska Commission on Indian Affairs

Judi M. gaiashkibos