Deb Haaland: First Native American Cabinet Secretary

Gateway Biographies

by Jill Doerfler, Matthew J. Martinez

In 2021, Deb Haaland made history as the first Indigenous cabinet secretary. Serving as Secretary of the Interior, Haaland has championed climate and the rights of Native peoples. Discover Haaland's early life, her political career, and more.

Genres: Nonfiction, Biography

48 pages, Paperback

Published August 1, 2022

About the author

Jill Doerfler (White Earth Anishinaabe) is Associate Professor and Department Head of American Indian Studies at the University of Minnesota–Duluth.

Reviews

[Julie H. Ernstein · Rating 4 out of 5]

I borrowed Doerfler (what happened to her name in the credits, Goodreads?!) and Martinez's Deb Haaland: First Native American Cabinet Secretary on a recent library trip, read it as soon as I got home, and sat down a short while later to write this review. Biographies written for children frequently gloss over more complicated material in order to provide a readily digestible narrative, and this one was pretty good although much was understandably elided from the Bears Ears National Monument boundary tug-of-war between the Obama and Trump Administrations. Most notable are the inclusion of a Select Bibliography, Learn More, and Index--things kiddos should come to expect and avail themselves of in the non-fiction reading fare they enjoy.

All told, this is a good read. I'm not sure why the authors chose not to capitalize Secretary of the Interior, why they include Bears Ears in the index but not Grand Staircase Escalante in the book's index, or how I read a book in November 2022 with a copyright of 2023, but won't allow those little mysteries to overshadow an otherwise enjoyable and informative read. Secretary Haaland has accomplished an impressive amount in one short year in office and I hope readers will appreciate her work ethic and commitment to stewardship of public lands and the environment for generations to come.

[Danielle Russell · Rating 4 out of 5]

I knew very little about Deb Haaland prior to reading this book. I knew she was the first Native American cabinet member, but that was about it.

After reading this short biography, I feel like I have learned so much about Haaland. She is an incredible woman who has fought for indigenous rights. I love that she has put focus on the investigation of missing and murdered indigenous women and has brought this tragic issue to the forefront.

I am so excited to see what is next for Deb Haaland. She's a fantastic role model for women and girls to look up to.


Thank you to Netgalley for providing me with a free advanced digital copy of this title in exchange for an honest review.

[Lellie · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very quick and informative biography of Deb Haaland, the first Native American cabinet secretary. This biography highlights her life as the first person in her family to graduate with a college degree and how her relationship with her Native grandparents ignited her love of the environment and cultural aspects of her Indigenous heritage, all of which shaped her policies in politics.

Thank you to netgalley for a free copy in exchange for an honest review!

[Emma · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was great. Love Haaland and learned a lot about her initiatives--which definitely reinforce feminist values.

source credits and selected bibliography. I don't love that the only cited sources are news articles--for some things there would definitely be books even if publishing is still catching up on some current events so that felt weird to me.

[Megan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This bio about Deb Haaland was super insightful and brought light to many issues not just related to her, but to Native Americans. We need more biographies on people like Deb. The text was informative and shed light on Native American boarding schools of the past, which I didn't learn about until university. I think this would be a great addition to any school library.

[Lauren · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved learning about how she helped restore Bears Ears and Grand Staircase.