Many Nations Longhouse

PLEASE NOTE THE TIME CHANGE FROM 6PM TO 7PM!

Sliver of a Full Moon is a portrayal of justice under the rule of law – the story of a movement to restore safety and access to justice to indigenous women in the U.S. It chronicles the history of the reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) and the stories of the women it affected.

As a specialist in Federal Indian Law, Mary Kathryn represented seventeen current and former Members of Congress in an amicus brief submitted in Adoptive Couple v. Baby Girl (the “Baby Veronica case”), before the United States Supreme Court. This amicus brief explained the legislative history of the Indian Child Welfare Act (“ICWA”) and argued why the ICWA constitutes an exercise of Congress’s constitutional authority under the Indian Commerce Clause. She also has significant experience in briefing other issues of constitutional law related to federal Indian law, as well as cases that implicate statutory rights under Indian rights laws such as the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (“NAGPRA”).

She is a frequent speaker at law schools and symposia on issues related to restoration of tribal sovereignty, tribal self-determination, Indian civil and constitutional rights, and safety of Native Women. She also represents the National Indigenous Women’s Resource Center (NIWRC) in support of the NIWRC’s work to end violence against Native Women. Mary Kathryn is an accomplished playwright who has written and produced several plays relating to Indians and the law, including Waaxe’s Law, Manahatta, My Father’s Bones (with Suzan Shown Harjo), Miss Lead, Fairly Traceable, and Sliver of a Full Moon.

Mary Kathryn is an enrolled citizen of Cherokee Nation.