Heidi Inman

Democracy is defended not only in capitols and courtrooms, but wherever ordinary people
refuse to remain spectators while freedom is being crushed. For Heidi Inman, that place
became Ukraine.

When Russia launched its full-scale invasion in 2022, Inman was living in Germany. She
could have watched the horror from a safe distance. Instead, she turned concern into action.
Using social media, she connected with a group of women, raised money, gathered badly
needed supplies, and helped transport them from Germany toward Ukraine. Her work offered
practical assistance to people fighting not merely for their homeland, but for their right to
live freely and determine their own future.

Heidi understood that Ukraine’s struggle was larger than Ukraine. Vladimir Putin’s invasion
was an assault on national sovereignty, human dignity, and the democratic proposition that
powerful nations may not erase their neighbors by force. By helping Ukrainians endure that
assault, Inman became a defender of democracy herself.

That commitment grew naturally from her life. Born on the reservation, Inman is a member
of the Sisseton Wahpeton Sioux Tribe. Her childhood was unsettled by alcoholism, family
violence, frequent moves, and racism in school. Yet those experiences strengthened her
identification with people whose lives, culture, and security are threatened by greater powers.
Her spirituality is grounded in the land. Inspired by Anishinaabe elder Sharon Day, Inman
participated in ceremonial water walks along the Missouri, Wisconsin, and Red Rivers and
Enbridge’s Line 3. She also supported the movement for Missing and Murdered Indigenous
Women, creating a red skirt embroidered with victims’ names that was displayed at the
Minneapolis Institute of Art.

Whether carrying water, preserving Native memory, or delivering aid for Ukraine, Inman has
followed the same moral compass: life must be protected, injustice confronted, and suffering
answered with action. Her courage is quiet, practical, compassionate, and personal. She met
an extraordinary historical moment with the courage to do what she could.

She is an artist, photographer, researcher, and Native woman. In Ukraine’s hour of peril,
Inman proved that words of compassion and care without action are useless. They are a
promise – one she kept it.

“Women are life givers and caregivers and we are warriors.”

MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA – JUNE 12, 2025