Blackfeet educator and leader Earl Barlow died on July 26 at the age of 96.
Barlow became known as the “Father of Indian Education” in Montana for his efforts to recognize the tribes during the state’s 1972 constitutional convention.
In a 2007 interview with the Regional Learning Project, Barlow recounted part of his address to the convention’s delegates after he read a newspaper article that contained racist stereotypes about Native Americans.
“Is bigotry in the state of Montana a real concern? If it is, then you, the delegates, have a golden opportunity to strike a blow for tolerance by incorporating into this constitution words to that effect,” Barlow recalled.
Despite there being no Native American delegates, Barlow’s advocacy led to the constitutional creation of the Indian Education for All program.
Barlow was born in 1927 and raised on the Blackfeet Reservation. After serving in World War II, he returned to Montana and began a long career in education. In 1970, he became the first American Indian to serve as Supervisor of Indian Education within Montana’s Office of Public Instruction.
State Democratic Sen. Susan Webber attended Browning High School when Barlow was its superintendent. She said Barlow broke down barriers for Indigenous people in Montana, and encouraged Native American girls to pursue their dreams in a time when that sentiment wasn’t popular.
“They never said that you could be a Montana state senator,” Webber said. “That came a long way and he was the first to show us the way.”
Each June 2 since 2019, the state of Montana has recognized Earl Barlow Day in honor of his lifetime commitment to Indian education and Indigenous rights.
