Beth Brant facts for kids

Beth E. Brant was a talented writer, essayist, and poet from the Mohawk nation. Her Mohawk names were Degonwadonti and Kaieneke'hak. She was part of the Mohawks of the Bay of Quinte First Nation from the Tyendinaga Mohawk Territory in Ontario, Canada. Beth Brant was also a speaker, editor, and teacher. Her writing often explored her deep connection to her Indigenous heritage. She wrote about important topics like fairness, community, and the experiences of Native people. She shared her own life experiences, including growing up with a Mohawk father and a Scottish-Irish mother. She published several books of stories and essays, and she also edited collections of other writers' works.

About Her Life

Beth Brant was born in Detroit, Michigan, on May 6, 1941. Even though she grew up away from the Mohawk reservation, she stayed very connected to her Tyendinaga Mohawk roots. Her grandparents taught her about their culture, language, and traditional stories. Her family included important Mohawk leaders like Chief Joseph Brant and Molly Brant. Her grandparents moved to Detroit so their children could have more opportunities. Beth's parents, Joseph and Hazel Brant, and her siblings lived with her grandparents in Detroit. Her father worked in a car factory and later became a teacher.

At 17, Beth married and later had three daughters: Kim, Jill, and Jennifer. After a difficult period, she became active in groups that supported women. She met her partner, Denise Dorsz, in 1976. They shared their time living in both Michigan and Ontario.

After her marriage ended, Beth worked many jobs to support her children. She was a salesclerk, waitress, and cleaner. She started writing later in life, when she was 40 years old. A special moment happened during a trip to the Tyendinaga Mohawk Territory with Denise. An eagle flew in front of their car and landed on a tree. Beth stopped the car to watch it. She felt a strong connection with the eagle, and it inspired her to begin writing. Her writing style could be funny, powerful, or very spiritual.

In her later years, Beth Brant enjoyed being a grandmother and great-grandmother. She had three grandsons, Nathaneal, Benjamin, and Zachary, and one granddaughter, Olivia. She also had two great-grandchildren, Hazel and Luke. Beth Brant passed away on August 6, 2015.

Her Writing Career

Beth Brant was a natural writer, and her talent was quickly noticed. She published her first work in the same year she started writing seriously. In 1983, editors Adrienne Rich and Michelle Cliff from a magazine called Sinister Wisdom asked Beth to edit a collection of writings by Native American women. This project became A Gathering of Spirit (1988). It was first published in Sinister Wisdom in 1984 and later reissued as a book many times. This was a very important book because it was the first collection of Native American women's writing edited by another Native American woman.

Her success continued with her book Mohawk Trail in 1985. This book included short stories, poems, and creative nonfiction. In 1991, she published Food and Spirits. Her stories often explored themes like unfairness, community, and what it means to be Native. Beth Brant's collection of essays, Writing as Witness: Essays and Talk, came out in 1994. These essays covered many topics about the art of writing and its meaning. In 2003, she published her second collection of essays, Testimony from the Faithful.

Beth Brant deeply valued her connection to her Mohawk people. She also worked on recording oral histories. She edited a series of personal stories told by the Elders of the Tyendinaga Mohawk territory. This book, called I'll Sing 'Till the Day I Die: Conversations with Tyendinaga Elders, was published in 1995. This project helped preserve the wisdom and knowledge of the Elders through their stories. It was an important contribution to the growing field of Aboriginal oral history. A year later, Beth Brant and Sandra Laronde co-edited an issue of the journal Native Women in the Arts, titled Sweetgrass Grows All Around Her. Beth Brant's writings continued to appear in many collections and magazines, especially those focusing on Native, feminist, and lesbian perspectives.

Activism and Helping Others

Beth Brant was one of the first Native American writers who openly identified as a lesbian in North America. Her work showed both her Native and her lesbian identities. She also valued her roles as a mother and grandmother. When she started writing, there were not many role models like her. She worked hard to encourage and support other Native American women writers who came after her.

Teaching and mentoring were very important parts of Beth Brant's life. She visited university classes to discuss topics like fairness, how people are treated differently, and the survival of Aboriginal peoples. She lectured at the University of British Columbia in 1989 and 1990. She also gave guest lectures in women's studies and Native American studies at the New College of the University of Toronto. Beth Brant lectured and read her works at many universities and cultural centers across North America.

Beth Brant also helped with many creative writing workshops. These included the Women of Colour Writing Workshop in Vancouver in 1991, the Michigan Festival of Writers in 1991, the International Feminist Book Fair in Amsterdam in 1992, and the Flight of the Mind Writing Workshop in Oregon in 1992. She also created writing workshops and groups specifically for Native American women, women in prison, and high school students. She always looked for ways to help others share their stories. Beth Brant was part of a project called Returning the Gift. This project aimed to create new chances for Native writers to share their work. It included a meeting of 250 writers in Oklahoma in 1992 and led to the creation of the Native Writers' Circle of the Americas.

Beth Brant also worked on other important projects. In 1982, she and Denise Dorsz started Turtle Grandmother Books. This was a place for manuscripts by Native American women and a source of information about Native women. It operated until 1987. She was also an activist for people affected by HIV/AIDS. She worked with People with AIDS (PWA) and led workshops about AIDS education in Native communities.

Awards She Received

• Creative Writing Award from the Michigan Council for the Arts (1984 and 1986)
• National Endowment for the Arts (1991)
• Affirmations Community Heritage Awards (1995)

Groups She Belonged To

• National Writers Union (United States and Canada)
• Native Circle of Writers of the Association
• Lesbians and Gays of the First Nations
• Turtle Clan

Selected Works

Books

• Mohawk Trail. Ithaca, NY: Firebrand Books, 1985.
• Food & Spirits. Ithaca, NY: Firebrand Books, 1991.
• A Generous Spirit: Selected Works by Beth Brant, edited by Janice Gould. Dover, FL: Inanna Publications, 2019.

Anthologies She Edited

• A Gathering of Spirit: A Collection by North American Women. Editor. Ithaca, NY: Firebrand Books, 1988.
• I'll Sing `til the Day I Die: Conversations with Tyendinaga Elders. Toronto: McGilligan Books, 1995.
• Writing as Witness: Essay and Talk. Toronto: Women's Press, 1994.

Other Writings

• "Grandmothers of a New World." Women of Power 16 (Spring 1990): 40-47.
• "Giveaway: Native Lesbian Writers." Signs: Journal of Women in Culture and Society 18 (Summer 1993): 944-947.
• "The Good Red Road." American Indian Culture and Research Journal 21.1 (1997): 193-206.

Anthologies Where Her Writing Appears

• Bruchac, Joseph, ed. New Voices from the Longhouse: An Anthology of Contemporary Iroquois Writing. Greenfield Center, NY: Greenfield Review Press, 1989.
• Bruchac, Joseph, ed. Songs from This Earth on Turtle's Back: Contemporary American Indian Poetry. Greenfield Center, NY: Greenfield Review Press, 1983.
• Dykewords: An Anthology of Lesbian Writing. Ed. Lesbian Writing and Publishing Collective. Toronto: Women's Press, 1990.
• Piercy, Marge, ed. Early Ripening: Poetry by Women. New York, Pandora Books, 1987.
• Roscoe, Will, ed. Living the Spirit: A Gay American Indian Anthology. New York: St. Martin's Press, 1988.

See also

In Spanish: Beth Brant para niños