Google honors writer, activist Zitkala-Sa with a new Doodle

Feb. 22 (UPI) -- Google is celebrating writer, musician, teacher, composer and suffragist Zitkala-Ša of the Sioux Tribe of South Dakota with a new Doodle on what would have been her 145th birthday.

Google's homepage features artwork of Zitkala-Ša by guest artist Chris Pappan, who is of Osage, Kaw, Cheyenne River Sioux and European heritage.

Zitkala-Ša was born on Feb. 22 in 1876. She spent her life devoted to protecting and celebrating her Indigenous heritage through art and activism during a time when Indigenous people were not considered citizens by the United States government.

She released an anthology or oral Dakota stories titled Old Indian Legends in 1901, which brought traditional Indigenous American stories to a wider audience. She also wrote the text and songs for The Sun Dance, the first Indigenous American opera.

Zitkala-Ša additionally co-founded and served as the first president of the National Council of American Indians in 1926. Her work helped pass the Indian Citizenship Act of 1924, which granted citizenship to Indigenous people born in the U.S., and the Indian Reorganization Act of 1934.