Americans for Indian Opportunity

LaDonna Harris in AIO DC office, circa 1973 (Box 5, Folder 14)

LaDonna Vita Tabbytite Harris, born February 15, 1931, in Cotton County, Oklahoma, is a Comanche national and social activist who has advocated for the empowerment of Native Americans. In 1970, she founded Americans for Indian Opportunity (AIO), and has served as its president for the past four decades.

In the 1950s, Harris helped organize the campaign to desegregate Lawton, Oklahoma. She co-founded Oklahomans for Indian Opportunity. As the wife of U.S. Senator Fred Harris (D-OK), she played a role in the Government's return of Blue Lake to Taos Pueblo in 1970 and in helping the Menominee tribe gain federal recognition after they had been terminated by the U.S. Government. Harris was the first spouse of a U.S. senator to testify before Congress.

Harris has served on presidential commissions and executive agency advisory boards under five different US presidents. She has also served on numerous boards of directors and was instrumental in founding some of today's leading national Indian organizations, including: the National Indian Housing Council; Council of Energy Resource Tribes; National Tribal Environmental Council; and National Indian Business Association. In 1980, she ran as the vice presidential candidate of the Citizens Party.

As the founder and president of AIO, Harris has been instrumental in devising and implementing its many initiatives. In addition to work done throughout the United States, Harris has participated in conferences and collaborations in Bolivia, New Zealand, the Soviet Union, Palestine, Morocco, and Mexico.

Harris has two daughters and one son: Kathryn Harris Tijerina (born in 1950); Byron Harris (born in 1958); and Laura Harris (born 1961), who currently serves as AIO's Executive Director.

Americans for Indian Opportunity is a non-governmental organization whose mission has centered on advocating for the self-sufficiency of Native Americans, facilitating between government agencies and tribal governments, and training the next generation of Native American leaders. AIO has initiated programs to improve governance, environmental protection, and economic development of Native American tribes. AIO's principal activities have included organizing conferences, seminars, workshops, and other programs for Native American tribes and governmental agencies; and publishing important findings and policy papers on Native American issues.

Unique to AIO has been the incorporation of traditional tribal processes and traditions in their advocacy. AIO has led efforts to involve indigenous peoples in their own cultural solutions through their seminars and projects with governmental and non-governmental organizations.

As a not-for-profit organization, AIO has funded its operations with government grants and donations from foundations and corporations. It has been headquartered in Washington, D.C., Bernalillo, New Mexico, and currently, Albuquerque, New Mexico.

From the guide to the LaDonna Harris Papers and Americans for Indian Opportunity Records, 1953-2010, 1970-2000, (University of New Mexico Center for Southwest Research)