Wilma Mankiller

A chronicle of legendary Native American poet/activist John Trudell's travels, spoken word performances, and politics.

This two-hour documentary explores one of the great historical tragedies of America's aboriginal people. In 1830, eager to gain access to lands inhabited by Native Americans, President Andrew Jackson enacted the Indian Removal Act which forced the Cherokee Nation to leave their homeland and to relocate into uncharted territory. Many of these forced settlers suffered from exposure, disease, and starvation, and upon arriving in Indian Territory, they arrived with no past and no future.

The story of an American hero and the Cherokee Nation's first woman Principal Chief who humbly defied all odds to give a voice to the voiceless.