Sarah+Winnemucca-A+19th+Century+American+Hero+by+Izzybell

A hero is a person that impacts your life and the worlds for the better.They change the way you think about life and the world and they help the less fortunate.

1)Intro to your 19th Century hero "I am a shell flower, who could be as strong or as beautiful as me." Sarah Winnemucca, a very influential Native American woman, spoke these very words. Not many Native Americans knew how to speak English, but Sarah Winnemucca was fluent in various Native American languages, English and even Spanish. The words she spoke in these many languages still influence many people today. //Life Among the Paiutes: Their Wrongs and Claims//,  is her award winning book causing her to become the first Native American woman to publish and copyright a book. Not only was this an honor, but she introduced people to the hardships and was one of the first influential women in a male dominated society.

2)Put hero's life into perspective--when did they live, where, who were they trying to help, why, how, why was this important? Sarah Winnemucca was born sometime around 1844 in western Nevada. Her father, Chief Winnemucca, was the chief of the Piatue Indians. During this time period, women did not have an important role in the community. They normally just stayed home and took care of the house, but Sarah was not destined to do this. She had goals in life to help people. She decided that she would use her gifts and opportunities to help the less fortunate. Sarah was a brave, courageous women that would not let anybody stand in her way. Even though many people doubted her, she was on a mission to teach and help her community. Nothing would prevent this women from accomplishing her goals.

3)What makes your person a hero--you must prove that your person meets the criteria of your own personal definition(this is the meat of your wiki page and your submission to the My Hero website-your looking at a good four paragraphs here--focus on that spark, that moment the person decided to be heroic or do heroic acts Unlike many people, Sarah was involved in both the Native American and English community. Many of the native Paiutes Indians saw her as a spy with the US army plotting to eradicate any Native Amerians. However, she actually was trying to help out the Native Americans. In 1878 when the Bannock Indians revolted against the United States she was sent on a dangerous mission to free her captured father. Her father was the Chief of the Paiute tribe, so it was crutial that he was saved. After this occasion, people viewed her as a peacemaker. Among her many heroic acts during the war, she also gave over 300 speeches to get influential people in the US government to support her tribe. She told them stories of how her people were forced out of their homes and the violence they faced. Sarah also started a school for Native Americans where they become proficient in the English language and their native languages. Unlike many Native Americans, Sarah was very fortunate. She had the opportunity and learn many languages and used her gifts and abilities to teach less fortunate Native Americans. Without Sarah Winnemucca, many Native Americans would not have the opportunity to learn various languages. She gave children an opportunity they never would have gotten any other way. Without Sarah her Native Americna tribe would have never succeeded through their tough times. This may not seem like a big deal to people in this century, but Sarah accomplished all these things while women did not even have the opportunity to vote. The country during this time period was mostly dominated by men, and it was very strange for a women to be accomplishing something so outstanding.

4)What is the person's legacy? Even though many people do not know of Sarah Winnemucca, without her many things today would not be the same. Since Sarah opened a school, she gave many Native Americans a chance to learn. Without her, many influential Native Americans would not get the chance to learn English. Sarah was thought of very highly with the officers in the Bannock War. In 2005, a statue of her was erected in Nevada to honor her. It was her mission to bridge the gap between the white people and Native Americans. It was her mission to defend her people. All of these things she accomplished. She was not going to let anything stand in her way, and she is know was a strong and independent woman.

5)What advice would they have for todays youth? Sarah probably would tell todays youth to always follow their dreams. If Sarah had let the fact that she was a women and a Native American stand in her way she would not have built her school. Everybody has a mission in life, and you can not let stereotypes and lables stop you from accomplishing your goal. In Sarah's day, women were just seen has being housewives and cooking for their families. Instead of fitting into this mold, Sarah set a path for her own life. This is an imporant lesson that kids today should know. Everybody is different and has their own mold, you should never try to fit someone elses. Some people may have little money but still aspire to go to medical school. You should work until you make it there. Some people may come for a conservative household but aspire to be a professional skateboarder. If you believe that something is your calling in life, fufill it.

http://www.harcourtschool.com/activity/biographies/winnemucca/ http://www.yosemite.ca.us/library/life_among_the_piutes/ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sarah_Winnemucca http://www.aoc.gov/cc/art/nsh/winnemucca.cfm http://www.unr.edu/wrc/nwhp/bios/women/winnemucca.htm
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http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d6/Sarah_Winnemucca.jpg http://www.flickr.com/photos/10251999@N05/1283309533/
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Hello. My name is Sarah Winnemucca. Some people would classify me a hero because I impacted many peoples lives and I impacted the world for the better. I changed the way people think about life and the world and I helped the less fortunate. I was born in a state which is now called Nevada in the Piaute Indian tribe. My father was the chief and my grandfather was the chief before him. I was lucky enough to learn both my native indian language and English. Our family was very influential in the community. We were almost like a window bridging the gap between the Native American and the Americans. Since my family was so influential in the community, during a war between two Indian tribes my father and some men from our tribe were taken hostage. It was my duty to rescue them, so I travel many miles to bring back the leader of our community. I had to be clever and persistant, just like a squirrel. In addition to this courageous act, I gave around 300 speeches to important government officials. For some reason, it was very startling to have a women become so influential in the community. One current problem that is occuring in the United States is the election. It seems like our country has become very divided and not united any longer. In my day, we never would have imagined having a black man as the Democratic nominee or a women come so close to becoming the Democratic nominee. Some people are very upset with this situation. I really do not see anything wrong with this situation, in fact, I find it outstanding. For most of my lifetime African Americans were slaves and women were seen as being only good for cooking and cleaning. I find it amazing that some people would complain about either on of the candidates, and they should support their party no matter who the nominee is. The country is changing. That is something to be proud about.

"I would rather be with my people, but not to live with them as they live."-Sarah Winnemucca

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