Join Tamie as she examines 150 years of American disability policy through two representative figures as analytical "points in time": Winona, a Lakota woman born in 1875 with Down syndrome, and Mary, born in 1928 with an intellectual disability. These hypothetical figures will help illustrate (and humanize) critical junctures in disability history.
Winona's point in time (1875) represents pre-colonial and early reservation-era Indigenous perspectives that viewed disability not as defect but as difference within the sacred circle of community. As colonization intensified, this framework was violently displaced by Euro-American institutionalization and eugenic ideology. The opening of institutions like the Canton Asylum for Insane Indians (1902-1934) and the Northern Hospital for the Insane (1902, now called the South Dakota Development Center) and reveals how culture and disability were used to justify removing Native Americans and others with disabilities from their communities.
Mary's point in time (1928-present) spans the entire arc of American disability policy. A Native American woman with intellectual disability born in 1928 would have faced pressure toward institutionalization, been labeled with dehumanizing terms, and been excluded from education. Yet she could have witnessed – and been shaped by – her own culture, the parent advocacy movement of the 1950s, the disability rights revolution of the 1970s (Section 504, Education for All Handicapped Children Act), the Americans with Disabilities Act (1990), the Olmstead decision affirming the right to community living (1999), and other landmark advances.
The presentation concludes by noting that contemporary inclusion policies echo the Indigenous wisdom Winona would have known: every person has value, deserves dignity, and deserves access to supports which allow for meaningful days.
About Tamie:
Tamie Hopp has served nonprofit causes for over 30 years. She is currently the Director of Philanthropy for the Black Hills Works Foundation, a nonprofit organization supporting more than 600 people with disabilities in Rapid City. She previously served for nearly 20 years as the Director of Government Relations and Advocacy for VOR, a national nonprofit organization for individuals with intellectual disabilities and their families.
Tamie also serves as the Chair of the Rapid City Disability Awareness & Accessibility Committee, on Board of the Black Hills Leadership Development, and as a Trustee with The Campership Fund.
Tamie has a law degree from Texas Tech University School of Law and earned her bachelor’s degree from the University of Wisconsin at Oshkosh. In 2019, she was recognized as a UWO Distinguished Alumni for dedicating her career to nonprofit causes.
She lives in Black Hawk with husband of 32 years, Ron, and has two adult children, Josh and Sierra.