Lucy Thompson
Che-na-wah Weitch-ah-wah (1856-1932), commonly known by her English name
Lucy Thompson, was a
Yurok author, best known for her book ''
To the American Indian: Reminiscences of a Yurok Woman.'' Written in 1916, the book is intended to preserve her people's stories. The book received the
American Book Award decades later in 1992. Thompson was born in the
Klamath River village of
Pecwan. Outside the book she is known to have come from "Yurok aristocracy" and to be married to a Euro-American man named Milton "Jim" Thompson. She intended to tell the stories of her people that were not being told by others, and to make others better understand her people and perspective, although she also criticized whites for practices like
overfishing. Thompson expressed that violence towards indigenous Californians were deliberate acts of genocide and she expressed concern for the continued stewardship of Klamath River salmon.
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