Viola Cordova (October 20, 1937 – November 2, 2002), a philosopher, artist, and author, member of the Jicarilla Apache tribe, was one of the first Native American women to earn a PhD in philosophy.
[1][2] Viola Cordova grew up in Taos, New Mexico; her father was a member of the Jicarilla Apache tribe, and her mother was Hispanic.
She served with Anne Waters as co-editor of the American Philosophical Association's Newsletter on American Indians in Philosophy from its inception in 2001 until her death.
[4] In his book, What Has No Place, Remains, Nicholas Shrubsole notes that "Viola Cordova reminds us that the act of listening to understand can not be premised upon the desire to see a distortion of one’s self.
[6] After her death, the University of New Mexico named an annual lecture series in her honor.