Kate Beane (2013-2014)

Kate Beane (2013-2014)-(Ahdipiwin), an enrolled member of the Flandreau Santee Sioux (Dakota) of South Dakota, is a Doctoral Candidate in American Studies at the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities. Her Ph.D dissertation explores the Indigenous perspective of her tribal history, as well as the ongoing efforts to retain and strengthen ties to both the Minnesota homeland and Dakota language. The Dakota were imprisoned and forcibly exiled from Minnesota after declaring war with the United States in 1862. Using oral history and archival materials, as well as personal family letters and journals, this project analyzes how the separations between family members, displacement from their ancestral land base, and the introduction of Christianity, have all impacted Dakota cultural identity over time. Kate received her B.A. in American Indian Studies from the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, in 2006.