Madonna Swan

Who was Madonna Swan?

Madonna Mary Swan-Abdalla was an American Indian woman Lakota. Born on the Cheyenne River Sioux Reservation in South Dakota, Madonna Swan prevailed over extreme difficulties including the Native American tuberculosis epidemic of the 20th century to lead a fulfilled life. She overcame the terrible conditions of socio-economic deprivation, restricted education, poor health care, and confinement to the Indian tuberculosis sanatorium and the reservation, to attend college, become a Head Start teacher, marry, raise a child, and be named Native American Woman of the Year. Madonna Swan become an inspiration to both Indian and non-Indian women.

In the autobiographical narrative Madonna Swan: A Lakota Woman’s Story as told through the author Mark St. Pierre, Madonna Swan relates the stories of her life.