Winona LaDuke is a tireless advocate, accomplished author, and Anishinaabekwe (Ojibwe) leader. Her work in To Be A Water Protector is meaningful, thought-provoking, and a call for “generational accountability” worldwide. Focusing on themes including environmental sustainability and Indigenous ways of knowing and being that “predate and postdate those of the church and nation states,” LaDuke implores us to open our eyes to the “ecocide” that is occurring daily. She reminds us that we are not only responsible for but also capable of change. This text also calls readers to question the ways in which a lack of ethics in governments and corporations is causing irreparable harm to Indigenous ways of life and life on Earth itself. She also reiterates the interconnectedness of living things and the rivers and mountains that have been granted rights in this regard. This is a must-read for social justice educators and all educators alike.

Caution: Violence and racism.

320 pp., 6 × 9", b&w photographs

Winona LaDuke (Anishinaabekwe, Mississippi Band Anishinaabeg)

Source: Association of Book Publishers of BC - Canadian Indigenous Books for Schools (2021-2022)

A two-time Green Party vice presidential candidate, author of five books of nonfiction, one children’s book and a novel, Winona LaDuke is one of the world’s most tireless and charismatic leaders on issues related to climate change, Indigenous and human rights, green and rural economies, grass-roots organizing and restoring local food systems over a career spanning nearly forty years of activism.

Winona LaDuke's profile page

Since time immemorial, Indigenous Peoples have protected the earth’s precious water systems in recognition of our dependence on these living ecosystems. Water Protectors are earth warriors who put their bodies on the line in the face of powerful, violent and destructive extractive industries supported by Wiindigoo governors. Winona LaDuke is one of those Water Protectors who has made a compelling call to all peoples to rise up and protect the water and in so doing protect life itself on this planet.

Pamela Palmater, Author of Warrior Life