Native Sun News Today: Lakota woman brings leadership to the table

Wednesday, April 24, 2019  

RAPID CITY – The municipal elections in Rapid City are less than six weeks away and five Native American women have stepped up to run in these elections. Cante Heart is running for City Council (Ward 5) and brings leadership experience and a large support network to the table as a candidate.

The Rosebud Sioux Tribal member (also part Ho-Chunk, Yankton Sioux, and Cheyenne River Sioux) is a mother and community organizer, whose leadership experience has taken her across the nation and into Europe as part of her trainings. She continues to travel and learn the systems of other communities and how to best use those qualities in a Rapid City and South Dakota setting.

Heart was born in Bismarck where she spent most of her childhood, but also lived around Green Grass and in Rapid City.

“I had the opportunity to live in Rockville, Maryland, and also Aberdeen, Rosebud, and Kyle, South Dakota. Rapid City and specifically, Ward 5 is home to me and has been for the past 20 years,” she said.

I am running for Rapid City council - Ward 5. I believe a fresh approach to leadership, new ideas, and a willingness to work together will help bring prosperity to all those in Rapid City. I want to earn your vote.
Dignity. Community. Prosperity.#VoteWithHeart#HeartofRC pic.twitter.com/10X3gFtLNh

— Cante Heart (@HeartCante) April 20, 2019

The Ward 5 candidate has lived in several places and brings a piece of those communities to Rapid City through her advocacy of the different groups she supports.

“I have attended school here, held jobs here, volunteered here, and am currently raising my three daughters here. Rapid City is and always will be our home. Being a mother has been the most significant position I hold,” said Heart. “I was also lucky enough to be raised by a strong Lakota woman, who instilled strong values in me and embossed the importance of being a voice for all people.”

Cante is the daughter of the late Carole Anne Heart, who served as Executive Director of the Great Plains Tribal Chairman’s Health Board, President of National Indian Education Association, and was the senior advisor to the Director of Indian Health Service in Maryland. Heart was born into leadership.

Heart is a graduate of Rapid City Central High School and will graduate in December 2019 with a Bachelor's of Science in Business Administration Specializing in Management from Oglala Lakota College.

“I chose the business field because I wanted to help increase economic mobility in my community and help my community grow. Economic and workforce development is an area that is so tightly woven into the fabric of prosperity for all,” Heart said. “I believe with conscientious choices, strategic plans, and opportunities matching educational needs with local business’ ideas, that communities can be uplifted through economic and business growth together.”

Over the past five years, her career has led her into community organizing on many levels. She has had numerous opportunities in working with various organizations, such as for-profits, non-profits, and political entities. Heart says she is grateful for the opportunity to work for organizations like South Dakota Democratic Party, Oglala Lakota College, and Lakota Peoples Law Project, who she is currently working for.

“I'm currently a digital media coordinator, where I'm learning advanced skills in media through an analytic approach. I have recently been working with the Oglala Sioux Tribe to create a database for the flood relief intake data.  This work has been not only gratifying as I can do something I love, but also be able to give back to those who need help during these trying times,” she said.

The Ward 5 candidate claims that working in various positions and being able to see approaches to businesses and organizations from “behind the scenes” has allotted her with valuable knowledge and tools that have allowed her to grow her ideas, problem-solving, and communication skills.

As part of her advocacy, Heart has taken a leadership role in MMIW He Sapa. This group has joined the national and international movement to help find missing Native American person and bring justice for those murdered in tribal communities.

“I am honored to advocate for Missing & Murdered Indigenous Women (MMIW) and Relatives.  With this group, I have been fortunate enough to help with the support of bill-making for MMIW across our nation,” Heart stated. “For the past three years, I've been organizing to create a Native American community center for Rapid City with a committed group of members called He Sapa Otipi. This stemmed from another local advocacy group I was a part of, the Rapid City Community Conversations.”

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A post shared by Cante Heart (@cheart_citycouncil) on Apr 11, 2019 at 9:42am PDT

The Ward 5 candidate says she is proud to be a Native Nation Rebuilder for the Native Governance Center, which is through the Bush Foundation. “The most important ongoing effort I've been a part of is being a leader in helping with the Native Vote. This was instilled in me through my mother, who was an advocate for Native issues across Indian Country and throughout our state,” she said.

“Recently, I've recently been accepted into the Transatlantic Inclusion Leaders program, which is an international program that brings together diverse young leaders to collaborate on business and civil society policies from a global perspective.  All of the opportunities I have been granted, I am thankful for and will continue to help in any way I can for the community I love,” Heart told Native Sun News Today.

Heart is grateful for all the relationships she has made through advocating.  Heart feels her community is one filled with so many different voices, people from all backgrounds, and “so many people who want the best for everyone who lives here."

Through her experiences, she has learned there is a lack of resources for many groups in Rapid City and there is a lot of work to do. She feels it is through groups like the ones she is a part of that gives her hope for her community and the people who live in Rapid City. She plans on being a voice for her community for many years to come; and with the direction she is headed with in her career, education, advocacy and training programs, running for city council seems to be just a stepping stone.

“I've always wanted to run for public office. I grew up watching my mother be a voice and advocate for this community as well as Indian Country, so it is in my heart to do the same. Successful candidates such as Kevin Killer, Peri Pourier, Red Dawn Foster, and of course Congresswomen Sharice Davids and Deb Haaland have been an inspiration for all Indigenous people to hold public office position,” she said.

Heart said she decided to run for City Council because she feels like there is a significant disconnect between the people and leadership of Rapid City.

 “A lot of citizens of Rapid City aren't heard and represented in the future of our community. I believe I am a fresh perspective for our city and one that would seek to build relationships and grow our city for the benefit of all,” said Heart.

Contact Native Sun News Today Correspondent Richie Richards at richie4175@gmail.com

Copyright permission Native Sun News Today