Vow of Silence: The Assassination of Annie Mae is a Hulu documentary that explores a tragic and controversial part of Indigenous activism in North America. It tells the story of Anna Mae Aquash, a courageous Mi'kmaq woman whose work with the American Indian Movement (AIM) put her in danger, leading to her betrayal and tragic death.
Yvonne Russo has directed and produced the American documentary series, which premiered on Hulu on 26 November, 2024. The four-part true crime series explores the life of Annie Mae Aquash until she was found dead in the mid-1970s and her murder remained unsolved for nearly thirty years.
Annie’s body was found in February 1976, but no concrete leads to her killers were found. In time, the investigation pointed to Arlo Looking Cloud and John Graham as the killers. Finally, decades after her murder, on March 20, 2003, Arlo and John were charged with Annie Mae's murder.
Vow of Silence: The Assassination of Annie Mae
shows Annie’s contribution to society
Anna Mae (27 March 1945) was born in Canada. She grew up in the Mi'kmaq community, which faced serious economic challenges. From an early age, she developed a strong commitment to social justice and later focused on Indigenous rights activism.
As stated in Vow of Silence: The Assassination of Annie Mae, in the late 1960s and early 1970s, Annie Mae became part of the American Indian Movement (AIM).
AIM focused on fighting for the rights of Native Americans and to restore treaty rights. Annie soon became a prominent figure. She participated in the organization's major events, such as the Trail of Broken Treaties in 1972, a protest that ended with the occupation of the Bureau of Indian Affairs in Washington, D.C..
Annie participated in the 71-day Wounded Knee occupation on the Pine Ridge Reservation in 1973. This event drew worldwide attention to the long history of broken treaties and government neglect.
Annie Mae's courage during the standoff made her a key figure in the movement. However, her growing prominence also brought dangerous attention from both AIM and outside forces.
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Vow of Silence on Hulu focuses on the tragic death of Annie Mae
Annie Mae Aquash was a key figure in AIM and attended a conference in Farmington, New Mexico. In September 1975 she was arrested on weapons and other charges.
On November 14, 1975, she was arrested again in Oregon on nine charges relating to an incident in Ontario but was promptly released on November 24. Because of her early release, AIM's head of security, Leonard Peltier, suspected that Annie was involved with the FBI. In December 1975, she was last seen in Denver and Rapid City, South Dakota. She was accompanied by Troy Lynn Yellow Wood-Williams.
Reports later stated that Annie was with Arlo Looking Cloud, John Graham, and Theda Nelson Clarke at the time. At this point, when her family and friends in Nova Scotia didn't hear her regular Christmas phone calls, they became concerned for her safety.
In February 1976, Mae's body was found frozen in a ravine on the Pine Ridge Reservation. The initial investigation determined that Annie Mae had died from exposure. But it was the family, friends, and supporters who raised strong feelings and demanded a second autopsy. This second look revealed that she had been executed. Her murder shook the Indigenous community and activism to its core.
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What happened to the killers of Annie Mae?
Arlo was convicted of Annie's murder in 2004 without any physical evidence and was sentenced to life imprisonment. John Graham was extradited to the United States to face murder charges in connection with the case. On December 10, 2010, he was convicted of felony murder, although he was acquitted of premeditated murder after Arlo testified against him.
John was also sentenced to life imprisonment for felony murder. In 2011, Arlo's sentence was reduced to 20 years as a result of his testimony against John Graham.
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Vow of Silence: The Assassination of Annie Mae is currently available for crime series lovers to stream on Hulu.
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