"With the passing of Vine Deloria Jr., I lost a beloved friend and mentor of more than 20 years, and the world lost one of its intellectual giants and great champions of human rights and social justice.

For almost 40 years, Deloria stood as the most widely recognized and respected spokesperson for Native America. Indeed, to many people, he was Native America.

A member of the Standing Rock Sioux tribe, Deloria first burst onto the national scene in 1969 with the publication of his best-selling book, "Custer Died for Your Sins: An Indian Manifesto." In the following years, he published more than 20 books, hundreds of articles and held many positions from which - in his own words - he "sought to plant seeds of ideas and raise doubts about what we believe.""

Get the Story:
Steve Pavlik: World has lost passionate advocate for American Indians (The Arizona Daily Star 11/26)

Indian Country Today Articles from January 10, 2005:
Wilma Mankiller: An original thinker with a warrior's spirit
Suzan Shown Harjo: Selective memories of Vine Deloria Jr.
Faith Spotted Eagle: Deksi (Uncle) Vine
Charlie Wilkins: Visionary thinker and wordsmith par excellence
Hank Adams: A Vine Deloria Jr. collaboration: The first decade
John Mohawk: Vine Deloria Jr.'s unfolding legacy
Philip Deloria: Tales of a remarkable father
Norbert Hill: A hero to many

Related Stories:
Harjo: My photo album of Vine Deloria Jr. (11/24)
Billy Frank: Keeping Vine Deloria's fire alive (11/24)
Philip Deloria: Nasty pokes in column about father (11/23)
Tim Giago: Deloria gave Indian people a voice (11/22)
Mark Trahant: Few writers as powerful as Deloria (11/21)
Deloria celebration scheduled in Rapid City (11/18)
Opinion: Deloria was always ahead of the curve (11/18)
Column: Deloria advanced some wacky views (11/18)
Vine Deloria funeral set for Friday in Colorado (11/17)
Tribal leaders recall Deloria as powerful advocate (11/17)
Opinion: Deloria introduced us to Indian Country (11/17)
Rick Williams: On the passing of Vine Deloria Jr. (11/16)
Editorial: Deloria changed how America views Indians (11/16)
Art Coulson: Safe journey for Vine Deloria Jr. (11/16)
Appreciation: Deloria an influential American (11/16)
Indian Country: In memoriam Vine Deloria Jr. (11/16)
Editorial: Deloria contributed to all Americans (11/16)
Vine DeLoria: Spoke for a nation of Natives (11/15)
Deloria hailed as 'visionary' for role in Indian affairs (03/11)
Jodi Rave: Deloria unknown because he's Indian (01/24)
Vine Deloria is ICT's American Indian Visionary (01/10)
Column: Vine Deloria refuses honorary degree (05/25)