Leading the Way: Martha Tommie’s Fantastic Vision for Change
In honor of Women’s History Month, Florida Seminole Tourism is again dedicating the entire month of March to highlighting incredible Seminole women who have guided, shaped, and devoted their lives to the Seminole Tribe of Florida. This week, we are featuring someone who uses her voice for modern Seminole resistance, Martha Tommie. She fearlessly advocates for climate action, social justice issues, and to further entrench Seminole sovereignty. Interested in more Women’s History Month features? You can learn about Lorene Bowers Gopher, Laura Mae Osceola, Susie Billie, Jennie Shore, and more Trailblazing Seminole Women in some previous blog posts.
Pictured in our featured image at the Standing Rock protest camp in December 2016, Martha Tommie (center, holding the Seminole Tribe of Florida Flag) and fellow Seminole Tribal members traveled to North Dakota in solidarity with the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe to protest the Dakota Access Pipeline.
Climate Advocacy, Social Justice, and the Seminole Way
Over the years, Martha Tommie has continually stood up for Seminole traditions, Indigenous rights and sovereignty, and climate action. She and other Native activists have opposed land development that would affect indigenous burial mounds in Jupiter, fought land development near the Micanopy Native American Heritage Preserve, attended climate rallies, and much more. What makes Tommie unique isn’t just her track record. But rather, it is her willingness to be present, to learn, grow, and continually show up for the Seminole people, the earth, and for what she believes in.
In 2022 Martha Tommie and Linda Gore, both from Brighton, travelled to Baton Rouge, LA. They attended the “Gulf Gathering for Climate Justice and Joy.” Tommie spoke at the rally, sharing her thoughts and hopes for the future, and what drives her. “We are trying to save the Everglades,” Tommie told the crowd. “I came here to gain knowledge and learn. This gives me strength and hope that I can stand for anything. This is important. The people, land, water, trees and everything God created for us is to protect it, not to destroy it.”
“I’m trying to be a leader and to be up front,” Tommie continued. “It makes me humble to be here and talk about the water, the land and the humanity. It was good to see other Natives here, including a friend I in met at Standing Rock. That’s what we do; we stand together and fight against the enemy…. I came up here for the water and the justice and to look out for the future generations’ water because if we don’t stand now, nobody’s going to stand in the future,” Tommie said. “That’s why I came, to look out for my people and the Indigenous people.”
Martha Tommie, left, and Linda Gore attend the 2022 “Gulf Gathering For Climate Justice and Joy.” (Via the Seminole Tribune)
Social Justice
Just recently, Tommie and others celebrated the release of Leonard Peltier (Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians). Peltier, who has been imprisoned since 1976, was scheduled for release to home confinement on February 18, 2025. Former President Joe Biden commuted his sentence in one of the last acts of his presidency. The United States found Peltier guilty of the murder of two FBI agents on the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota in 1975.
An activist and member of the American Indian Movement (AIM), Peltier fought against racism and police brutality against Native Americans. Although he admits to being a part of the shootout, Peltier denies to this day killing the agents. Peltier was sentenced to two life sentences. In the aftermath of his trial and sentencing, a significant uproar over his treatment, extradition, and the trial itself drew support from those across Indian Country and beyond. Over the decades, many have supported Peltier’s case for clemency. Former President Joe Biden finally granted that clemency just this year.
Over the years, Martha Tommie and other Seminoles and Native supporters have called for his release, protesting and holding prayer ceremonies outside Coleman Federal Correctional Institution in Sumterville, Florida, where he was imprisoned. At a rally for his release in 2018, Tommie shared that “I stand in powerful prayers for the freedom of Leonard Peltier. He knows we are serious about his freedom. I went to Standing Rock to stand for our water; I know what powerful prayers are worth. Stay humble and pray to the lord. We are all related by blood, red blood.” Tommie brought the same STOF flag that journeyed with her to Standing Rock to the rally for Peltier.
In a Seminole Tribune article detailing the reaction to his release, Martha Tommie shares that she cried when she heard the news. “Our prayers were answered. It might not have been on our time as we wanted it to be, but it was on the Creator’s time,” Tommie said. “He needs to be home with his family and his people.” Below, you can see Martha Tommie, left, and Ryanna Osceola attending a rally for Leonard Peltier on Sept. 22, 2018, in Sumterville, Florida.
Via the Seminole Tribune
DAPL and the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe
In 2016, an incredible number of Native activists, protesters, and more supported the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe and their fight against the Dakota Access Pipeline. Martha Tommie was one of these people. Demonstrators aimed the protest at halting the pipeline’s construction across the Missouri River, their main source of water, in Cannon Ball, North Dakota. Martha Tommie, along with others from Brighton, traveled via caravan to the encampment, bringing with them food, water, tarps, tents, propane, and other supplies that would allow them to dig in and occupy the camp for an extended amount of time.
The protest was not without dangers. In September 2016, a contingent of bulldozers, private security, and dogs would roll up to the construction site, destroying two miles of land that had previously been identified as holding burial grounds and sacred sites near the reservation. In a Seminole Tribune article about the confrontation and protest, Tommie shared how stunned she was by the conflict. “I was standing on enemy lines and they turned out the dogs,” she said. “It was traumatizing. I was staring down a Rottweiler and prayed it wouldn’t get away, I thought about my grandbabies’ future when I was up there. I have to look out for them. We are able to stand up and fight, sitting back and not doing anything isn’t right. I fight for them to have a good life.”
Tommie’s Reaction to 2020 Legal Wins
Following that confrontation, the project underwent a series of stops and starts. Legal battles determined the timeline of the construction. Crews completed the pipeline in 2017. But, in 2021, the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe won a major legal battle; the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit sided with the Standing Rock Sioux and other tribes in saying that there should have been a thorough environmental review. In 2022 the Supreme Court further declined to hear the case, again siding with the Standing Rock Sioux.
Martha Tommie is hopeful that these legal wins spell a positive future for the Standing Rock Sioux in their fight to protect the land and water. “We sent powerful prayers no matter what was thrown at us, rubber bullets and hypothermia,” she said of the DAPL protest. “We kept singing. It’s a big miracle for us to see the Standing Rock Sioux tribe keep fighting for what’s right. This is our water; everything needs water. How will we continue to make medicine if we don’t have good water? The whole world needs water.”
Tommie continued by reflecting on the legal wins, stating “I’m proud of the water protectors, we never gave up. This is my testimony of how I’m happy to see the Standing Rock Sioux get this huge victory. I still stand with you all in my humble powerful prayers.”
From left, Theresa Frost, Annette Jones and Martha Tommie display their support in North Dakota. (Via the Seminole Tribune)
A Flag’s Journey
The Seminole Tribe of Florida flag that Martha Tommie brought to Standing Rock has continued its journey. It has traveled with her not only to Standing Rock, and to the Peltier protest above, but a number of other protests and rallies as well. Martha Tommie donated the flag to the Tribal Historic Preservation Office (THPO) in 2019, where it now hangs as a powerful symbol of Seminole sovereignty and dedication to justice.
“This flag has been on our wall since the building opened,” said Paul Backhouse, then-Heritage & Environmental Resource Office Senior Director and THPO Officer. “It inspires us and is a powerful symbol of your sovereignty. Martha, you are a hero to me in what you have done to stand up and advocate for the rights of your people.”
In 2021, the flag would gain further significance. Below, (far left), Martha Tommie stands with the family of Samuel Osceola Sr. in October 2021 as they add his name to the Seminole DAPL flag, commemorating his time at the Standing Rock protest.
Via the Seminole Tribune
Martha Tommie wanted the flag signed for the tribal members who traveled to Standing Rock. Joe Osceola Jr. signed the flag for himself and Samuel, commemorating both of their times at the protest. “We shared so many stories up there,” Tommie said of the DAPL protest. “Samuel was a great man; he had a lot of laughter and was real. Joe, it was a blessing to stand with you at Standing Rock and a blessing to go support Indigenous people and protect the water.”
The signing of the flag further cemented the trio’s legacy, a physical reminder of their commitment to climate justice. “We all need water,” Tommie said at the memorial ceremony. “Sometimes it takes a lot to get people involved. I want to leave a legacy of Seminoles fighting for our water.”
Martha Tommie, above, holding the STOF DAPL flag outside the Billy L. Cypress Building at its opening in 2019. Via the Seminole Tribune.
Unconquered
Through her activism, Tommie not only fights for the future but also honors the past. Like many citizens of the Seminole Tribe, she sees it as her duty to protect and preserve the Everglades, the water, and continue the fight for what she believes is right.
In a Bay 9 News “Street Level” segment in 2020, Tommie emphasizes that for her, placing herself in these fights is integral to preserving the legacy of those who came before her. The fight for water, for the Everglades, is as important a form of resistance as any other. Like those that came before her, Tommie embodies Seminole resilience through her actions, continuing to be present and vocal.
“Unconquered, that’s us,” Tommie states “We never signed a peace treaty. I always try encourage my people to stand unconquered away from the negativity that brings the sickness into our tribe. To fight against anything that would try to destroy our land, our people, our water, our families.”
Author Bio
Originally from Washington state, Deanna Butler received her BA in Archaeological Sciences from the University of Washington in 2014. Deanna moved to Florida in 2016. Soon, she began working for the Seminole Tribe of Florida’s Tribal Historic Preservation Office. Deanna was the THPO’s Archaeological Collections Assistant from 2017-2021. While at the THPO, Deanna worked to preserve, support, and process the Tribe’s archaeological collection. She often wrote the popular Artifact of the Month series and worked on many community and educational outreach programs. She lives in Lakeland, FL with her husband, two sons, and dog.
