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In 1992, Ms. Furse was elected to U.S.Congress
representing Oregon’s First Congressional
District where she was the first woman to
represent this district, and the first African
born member of the United States Congress.
Furse served until 1999 when she chose to
retire and return home to Oregon. The committees
she served on included, Armed Services, Banking,
and Commerce. Her focus in Congress
was on reducing military spending, protecting
the environment, defending a woman’s
right to choose, as well as supporting adequate
funding of diabetes research.
Born in Nairobi Kenya, Elizabeth moved to
South Africa as a child. Inspired by her mother
Barbara, Furse’s activism against apartheid
caused Elizabeth to join the first Black Sash
demonstration in Cape Town in 1951.
This experience set the stage for a life of
activism and commitment to civil rights.
Furse moved to England in 1956, and then married
and moved to Los Angeles, California where
her children Amanda and John were born.
While in Los Angeles, Furse was involved in
a women’s self help project in Watts
and assisted in Caesar Chavez’s United
Farm Workers efforts to unionize the grape
fields.
On relocating to Seattle in 1968, Furse became
involved with the Native American fishing
rights struggle and co-founded Citizens for
Indian Rights, a non-Indian support organization
which did grass roots education on the law
of treaties and the solemn obligations that
flow from such treaties. This organization
became the National Coalition to the Support
Indian Treaties (NCSIT).
Elizabeth became a US citizen in 1972,
and in 1978 she moved to Oregon where she
attended Northwestern School of Law for two
years before leaving to direct the Restoration
Project of Native American Program of Oregon
Legal Services (NAPOLS). Oregon Tribes had
been devastated by the Termination Era with
56 tribes and bands having their federal relationship
terminated by Act of Congress in 1954.
From 1980-86 Furse coordinated the successful
passage of three Acts of Congress to restore
the federal status of the Coquille Tribe (1982)
Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde (1983)
and the Klamath Tribe (1986).
In 1986, Elizabeth co-founded the Oregon Peace
Institute, located in downtown Portland. OPI
mission is to develop and disseminate conflict
resolution curriculum for Oregon schools.
Elizabeth and her husband, John C. Platt own
Helvetia
Vineyards in Washington County,
where they have lived for over twenty years.
Ms. Furse directs the Institute for Tribal
Government at the Hatfield School of Government.
The Institute provides governance
training to elected tribal officials
across the nation.
In addition, the Institute also provides agency
training on federal Indian law
and federal trust responsibility to staff
of federal and state governmental agencies.
The Institute has also created a collection
of video recorded interviews of present-day
tribal leaders who have made important contributions
to tribes and federal Indian policy. The Great
Tribal Leaders of Modern Times
tapes and accompanying curriculum are available
to interested schools and individuals.
Elizabeth Furse has a lifelong commitment
to Native American issues, peace, the environment
and social justice. Today, she continues
to serve as a public citizen on several regional
and national boards dealing with health, social
and economic issues.
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