Vow of Silence: The Assassination of Annie Mae is a Hulu documentary that probes into one of the most tragic and controversial chapters in the history of Indigenous activism in North America. It tells the story of Anna Mae Aquash, a fearless Mi’kmaq woman whose activism within the American Indian Movement (AIM) made her a target of betrayal, suspicion, and ultimately, a tragic assassination. Let’s start with Vow of Silence: The Assassination of Annie Mae true story and then her life in depth, followed by the circumstances surrounding her death and what this means in terms of justice and Indigenous rights.
Like many other true crime documentaries, Vow of Silence: The Assassination of Annie Mae explores the mystery of a crime that has both captivated and troubled many for decades.
What is the true story behind Vow of Silence: The Assassination of Annie Mae?
She was born as Anna Mae Pictou on 27 March 1945 in Shubenacadie, Nova Scotia, Canada. She was part of the Mi’kmaq community that was facing severe economic hardships. Despite her humble beginnings in a relatively minor First Nations community, she developed a strong commitment to social justice from a young age. She eventually began channelling her determination into actual activism for Indigenous rights.
By the late 1960s and early 1970s, Annie Mae had joined AIM. It was a movement created to resist the systemic injustices inflicted upon Native Americans and demand the restoration of treaty rights. She was bright and intelligent and quickly rose to prominence in the organisation and took part in several pivotal moments in the history of AIM, including the Trail of Broken Treaties in 1972. It was a cross-country protest that culminated in the occupation of the Bureau of Indian Affairs in Washington, D.C.
She was also a part of the 1973 Wounded Knee occupation, which was a standoff on the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota that lasted for 71 days. The occupation brought the world’s attention to the centuries of broken treaties and neglect by the governments. It became a defining moment in AIM’s history. The passion and fearlessness of Annie Mae in that standoff solidified her status as a central figure in the movement. But her increasing prominence also attracted perilous attention from within AIM and external forces.
The tragedy: Death of Annie Mae Aquash
In February 1976, the frozen body of Annie Mae was found in a ravine on the Pine Ridge Reservation. The initial investigation into the cause of her death ruled it as due to exposure. However, there were suspicions raised by her family, friends, and supporters, and there was a demand for a second autopsy. It was done. Examination proved she had been shot execution-style in the back of the head. The news of her murder sent shockwaves through the Indigenous and activist communities. Everybody was asking themselves how someone so committed to justice and her community could meet such a terrible end. The answers are shown in the Vow of Silence: The Assassination of Annie Mae documentary.
Her murder proves that things for Native Americans have not improved much even after about half a century of Osage Indian murders as depicted in the Martin Scorsese movie, Killers of the Flower Moon (2023).
A movement torn apart
When Annie Mae died, AIM was already under constant FBI surveillance in the name of the Counter Intelligence Program or COINTELPRO. The FBI wanted to destabilise and scatter activist organisations similar to AIM (read about the activities that they had against Black power movements, and among others, against the Black Panther Party through COINTELPRO). To this end, the FBI sowed and harvested divisions and paranoia. AIM was already under severe pressure from law enforcement and started breaking into parts through internal mistrust.
In this climate of suspicion, Annie Mae was accused (falsely, we know now) by some within AIM of being an FBI informant. The Vow of Silence: The Assassination of Annie Mae documentary looks into how baseless these accusations were. They nevertheless spiralled out of control. And it was due to those suspicions that she was abducted, interrogated, and then executed by people within the very movement she had dedicated her entire life to supporting.
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The long fight for justice
Justice for Annie Mae was denied for decades, but her family and supporters would not give up their fight and persistently tried to find justice and finally unearth the murderers. It was as recent as early 2000 that some actual legal development could be seen. Arlo Looking Cloud, a former AIM member, was convicted in 2004 for his involvement in Annie Mae’s murder. In the years to come, other AIM members were arrested and convicted as well.
Even though these convictions proved a kind of closure for the loved ones of Annie Mae, Vow of Silence: The Assassination of Annie Mae documentary digs much deeper and examines her entire story and the delayed justice. It also throws up many uncomfortable questions about the systemic and institutional forces that contributed to her death.
Is there a trailer for Vow of Silence: The Assassination of Annie Mae?
Indeed, here is a trailer for Vow of Silence: The Assassination of Annie Mae:
(Hero and featured image: Courtesy of Screenshot/Hulu via YouTube)
This article first appeared on Lifestyle Asia India
