The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced Sunday that Sacheen Littlefeather, a Native American activist and actress who was jeered in 1973 for standing up for Marlon Brando and declining an Oscar, had passed away at the age of 75.
“When I am gone, always be mindful that whenever you stand for your truth, you will be keeping my voice and the voices of our nations and our people alive,” Littlefeather is quoted as saying in the tweet from the Academy announcing her death.
The Academy paid tribute to Littlefeather and issued a formal apology for how she was treated during the Oscars ceremony nearly 50 years ago at a ceremony held at its brand-new museum in Los Angeles two weeks ago.
At the 1973 Academy Awards, the first to be televised live around the world, Littlefeather, who is of Apache and Yaqui ancestry, received jeers as he spoke on behalf of Brando and explained why he would not accept his Best Actor Oscar for “The Godfather.”
