A member of the Rosebud Sioux Tribe, Lillian Sparks Robinson has worked in Washington, D.C. for nearly 20 years, devoting her career to supporting the educational pursuits of Native American students, protecting the rights of indigenous people, and empowering tribal communities. In 2010, Lillian was appointed by President Obama, and confirmed by the U.S. Senate, to serve as the Commissioner for the Administration for Native Americans. In this role, she worked on programs and policy impacting Native languages and education, social development, and economic development for American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander communities. Prior to her service at ANA, Lillian served as the Executive Director of the National Indian Education Association (NIEA), where she worked extensively on education policy and appropriations impacting American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian students. A former staff attorney at the National Congress of American Indians, Lillian has received numerous awards and recognition, including being named as one of seven young Native American Leaders by USA Today Magazine, one of “40 Under 40” from the National Center for American Indian Enterprise Development, and American Indian Woman of the Year. Lillian served as the emcee for numerous AISES events at the 2019 and 2020 AISES National Conferences. Currently, Lillian serves as the Owner and CEO of Wopila Consulting, Inc.
Thank you, Lillian, for taking the time with the American Indian Science and Engineering Society (AISES) as we celebrate a Black History Month. We want to honor this important month through the celebration of Black x Indigenous brilliance.
Why is it important to take time to reflect and celebrate Black History Month?
African Americans played a huge and significant role in the development and building of our country, that is hardly discussed, and continue to make significant and meaningful contributions in all sectors and segments of society, but do not receive the recognition and acknowledgment due. “Black History” is much more than slavery and civil rights, and we have to create spaces in schools, corporations, educational and cultural institutions, governments, and communities to share our stories about our diverse experiences, backgrounds, and histories. Just like Native American communities, the African American experience is not monolithic and there is so much to share and learn. It is necessary that we not only remember all the sacrifices made by African Americans over the course of history of this country, but that we also celebrate all of our achievements, influences, beauty, culture, and contributions that are happening today. And these conversations and celebrations should happen more than once a year.
How do you connect to your Native heritage and how is that important to your foundation?
My father, Leroy Sparks, is African American and my mother, Georgeline Brusbreaker Sparks is Lakota- Sicangu and Oglala. That of course means I am fortunate enough to have both bloodlines- African American and American Indian. My Ina (mother in Lakota) was intentional in how she raised my sister and me, given that we grew up in Baltimore County, Maryland, far away from our ancestral homelands and where she was raised in South Dakota. My Ina made sure we knew that we are Lakota and instilled in us a strong sense of pride and identity by making sure we were raised with our cultural and traditional values, a relationship with our tiospaye (family), and a knowledge base of our ceremonies and traditional way of life. Growing up, I watched her always working on behalf of Native peoples and communities and all summer long we would travel to pow-wows dancing and connecting with other Native peoples on the east coast. With my Mother as my role model and the foundation that was laid by her, I have always been comfortable in my identity as a Native woman and a Black woman living in a society that wasn’t created for me, but that will never conquer me.
What advice can you offer to those who are multicultural and navigating identities?
The best advice I can give is to embrace your entire self. Don’t overthink it because you cannot change your genetic makeup. You have been created beautifully as you are and there is no rule that says you must choose one identity over the other. To deny part of you, is to deny all of you. And my Dad always told me “lf people don’t or can’t accept you - that is their problem, not yours.”
Is there a Black x Indigenous individual who inspires you?
This is a hard question because I don’t know many Black x Indigenous people that I’m not related to!” So, with that information, I will say “all my relatives”. :-). Seriously, my family always inspires me, and I gain so much strength, energy, and love spending time with my sisters and cousins. Like most families, we may argue or not always see “eye to eye”, but we always come back together stronger than before and I’m thankful for the lessons and laughter we share during those times we get to visit.
In a separate interview with Center for Native American Youth you noted that you began college as an Electrical Engineering major at Morgan State University. What advice do you have to Black and/or Black x Indigenous students pursuing a STEM field?
Yes, I started as an Electrical Engineering major because I was decent at math and I wanted to work in a field where there are few people that looked like me (person of color and a woman). Let’s just say, by the time I got to my junior year in college, I realized that this major was not for me and made the change to Political Science. It took me that long to make the change because I was stubborn and would have rather remained miserable than admit I made a wrong decision. These days I’m more quick to pivot when it’s clear that something is not the right fit for me! For students, Black, Indigenous, women, that are pursuing careers in the fields of engineering or STEM/STEAM, and are thriving, persevering, and determined to finish- I applaud you! I’m sure there will be long days and nights studying and, in the lab, but you are built for this. Support each other, lean on each other, find good mentors, and take breaks when needed. It takes a tremendous amount of hard work and dedication to succeed in this field and you have the skills and abilities to learn and apply this knowledge to make much needed changes for our communities. We need innovation based in diverse cultural (Black and Native) experiences and your brilliance to make progress in so many areas and I thank you for making the decision to do this work!
Learn more about Wopila Consulting, Inc at https://www.wopilallc.com/
