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Native American activist Sacheen Littlefeather — who cemented her place in history when she declined actor Marlon Brando’s Oscar at the 1973 Academy Awards — died at age 75 Sunday.
Littlefeather died around noon surrounded by loved ones in her home in Novato, California, according to her caretaker. She had been battling breast cancer since at least 2018 and the disease metastasized in recent years.
Her death came just two weeks after she was honored in a celebration hosted by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, where she spoke of her impending end.
“I’m crossing over soon to the spirit world and you know, I’m not afraid to die,” she said at the event. “Because we come from a we/us/our society. We don’t come from a me/I/myself society. And we learn to give away from a very young age. When we are honored, we give.”
The Academy, which announced her death Sunday night, had formally apologized to Littlefeather in June for its treatment of her following the 1973 Oscars.
Littlefeather, who was 26 at the time, had attended the award ceremony in place of Brando, who had decided to boycott the awards in protest of Hollywood’s portrayal and treatment of Native Americans and to acknowledge the ongoing American Indian Movement occupation of Wounded Knee.
The activist — and actress herself — took to the stage and rejected the Oscar Brando won for “The Godfather” and delivered a speech denouncing the treatment of Native Americans at his request.
Littlefeather, wearing traditional Apache attire, told the star-studded audience at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion as well as 86 million viewers watching from home that Brando would not be accepting the award.
