Actress Sacheen Littlefeather, who recently received an apology from the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences for the organization’s treatment of her at the 1973 Oscars when she declined an Academy award on Marlon Brando’s behalf, has died at the age of 75. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences said that Littlefeather died at her home in Novato, California on Sunday, according to her caretaker.
The organization had held an event in Littlefeather’s honour two weeks ago for an evening of ‘conversation, healing and celebration.’ For the unversed, when Brando won the best actor for The Godfather in 1973, Littlefeather took the stage, becoming the first Native American woman ever to do so at the Academy Awards.
When she appeared on Brando’s behalf in 1973, Littlefeather, then 26, said she was instructed by Brando not to touch the Oscar statuette; and by show producer Howard Koch to restrict her remarks to 60 seconds, under threat of arrest if she went over time, as reported by The Hollywood Reporter.
Littlefeather said in her speech that “[Brando] very regretfully cannot accept this very generous award and the reasons for this being are the treatment of American Indians today by the film industry, excuse me, and on television in movie reruns, and also with recent happenings at Wounded Knee.” The 1973 Oscars were held during the American Indian Movement’s two-month occupation of Wounded Knee in South Dakota.
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Some in the audience booed her. John Wayne, who was backstage at the time, was reportedly furious. In the years since, Littlefeather has said she’s been mocked, discriminated against and personally attacked for her brief Academy Awards appearance. In making the announcement, the Academy Museum shared a letter sent June 18 to Littlefeather by David Rubin, academy president, about the iconic Oscar moment.
Rubin called Littlefeather’s speech ‘a powerful statement that continues to remind us of the necessity of respect and the importance of human dignity.’ “The abuse you endured because of this statement was unwarranted and unjustified,” wrote Rubin. “The emotional burden you have lived through and the cost to your own career in our industry are irreparable. For too long the courage you showed has been unacknowledged. For this, we offer both our deepest apologies and our sincere admiration.” Rubin continues.