Here’s Why This Trailblazing Native American Politician Isn’t Accepting Her Colleague’s Apology
A Native American politician in Kansas is tired of her colleagues’ lame excuses for their lack of cultural awareness. In a truly historical moment, Rep. Ponka-We Victors earlier this month became the first Native woman to preside over the Kansas House of Representatives—and now she says that she will not accept a white lawmaker’s apology for doing his best to ruin it.
“I’m tired of accepting these apologies when somebody should know how to act in the Kansas Representative House chambers,” Victors said in an interview with The Daily Beast. “You should know right from wrong and how to conduct yourself.”
On March 23, Victors, a Democrat, made history as the first Native woman to chair the state house. However, the triumphant moment was almost immediately tainted when Rep. John Wheeler, a Republican, told her that he wanted to check to make sure she wasn’t using a tomahawk in place of a gavel.