The Apache and Yaqui activist respectfully waved off actor Roger Moore, who attempted to hand her the statue.
She had been instructed by Brando not to touch the Oscar and, rather, read an eight-page statement.
Things did not go quite as planned.
Sacheen Littlefeather at the 1973 Oscars (Photo:UCLA Library Special Collections,CC BY 2.0)
Still, in the short time she did have, Littlefeather made her voice heard.
[Brando] very regretfully cannot accept this very generous award.
While some in the audience applauded Littlefeather, her presence at the awards ruffled feathers.
Marlon Brando on The Dick Cavett Show in 1973 (Photo:Sipuede7via Wikimedia Commons,CC BY-SA 4.0)
He’d also supported Native American causes for years.
He clearly understood the effect that this had not only on adults but, in particular,children.
People actually dont realize how deeply these people are injured by seeing themselves represented, he shared.
