Sarah Deer

Sarah Deer (born November 9, 1972 ) is a Native American (Muscogee (Creek) Nation ) lawyer, and a professor of Women, Gender, and Sexuality studies and Public Affairs and Administration at the University of Kansas. She was a 2014 MacArthur fellow and has been inducted into the National Women's Hall of Fame in 2019.

Deer advocates on behalf of survivors of sexual assault and domestic violence, primarily in Native American communities. She has been credited for her "instrumental role" in the 2013 reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act, as well as for testimony which is credited with the 2010 passage of the Tribal Law and Order Act. Deer coauthored, with Bonnie Claremont, Amnesty International's 2007 report Maze of Injustice, documenting sexual assault against Native American women. She is also Chief Justice for the Prairie Island Indian Community Court of Appeals.

Deer advocates for feminist, queer, and trans politics in Indigenous communities. She is most acknowledged for her activism to stop violence against Native American women. She has received national awards from the Department of Justice and the American Bar Association for her accomplishments.

Deer received her B.A. and J.D. from the University of Kansas.

Articles

 * Deer, Sarah, Toward an Indigenous Jurisprudence of Rape (2010-10-13). Kansas Journal of Law & Public Policy, Vol. 14, 2004–2005.