There have been many influential cultural leaders throughout world history. These leaders worked to change and improve society for those who do not have their own voice. Minorities often suffer miserable conditions until someone takes a stand to demand change. In the United States, Native Americans are treated as second-class citizens who do not enjoy the equality that all people in this country should have. Many well-known Native Americans worked to improve education, health care, housing, and employment for their people. One of the few women in this group, Wilma Mankiller, made many significant achievements in modern Native American society. As a member of the Cherokee tribe, Mankiller overcame many obstacles to become the first female deputy chief, as well as the first female chief, of the Cherokee Nation. Wilma Mankiller became one of the most important leaders in Native American history as well as an influential advocate for women's rights. Wilma Mankiller was born in 1945 in Tahlequah, Oklahoma, where she lived with her father Charlie, a full-blood Cherokee, her mother Irene, of mixed Irish and Dutch ancestry, and her four sisters and six brothers. Their last name is a traditional Cherokee military rank. Wilma was a fifth-generation Mankiller, whose ancestry traced back to the Cherokee forced to move west along the Trail of Tears (Mankiller 3-4). She grew up in Oklahoma on land granted to her family by the federal government. In 1956, the Bureau of Indian Affairs, a federal agency responsible for land held in trust by the United States for Native Americans, moved his family to San Francisco with their consent (Mankiller 60). The government's resettlement of his family had a big impact...... middle of paper ......angels, along with strong leadership, it is possible to make many influential changes to help to improve the life of a culture. Works CitedAbbey, Susannah. “Chief Wilma Mankiller.” The My Hero Project. November 10, 2010. Web. May 9, 2011. .Mankiller, Wilma Pearl and Michael Wallis. Mankiller: a leader and his people. New York: St. Martin's Griffin, 2000. Print. Sullivan, Patricia. “The first female chief of the modern Cherokee, WilmaMankiller, excelled in hardship.” The Washington Post, April 7, 2010. Web. May 9, 2011. "Trail of Tears National Historic Trail - (US National Park Service)." Discover your America. United States National Park Service, October 7, 2010. Web. May 9 2011. .