Join Heyday for an event at the Owens Valley Paiute-Shoshone Cultural Center where the creators of Alice Piper Speaks Up will engage in a conversation about Alice’s life, work, and their own creative process in honoring her legacy.

In 1924, Alice Piper made history when she fought for—and won—the rights of Native American students, like herself, to attend public schools in California, striking a forceful blow to school segregation nationwide in the process. Alice Piper Speaks Up (debuting on Alice Piper Day, June 2, 2026) is the first book ever to be written about this undersung champion of civil rights.

Written by Sage Andrew Romero and Loralee Sepsey, members of the Big Pine Paiute Tribe, and illustrated by Morgan Thompson of the Cherokee Nation, this story centers to the true life fight of one determined teenager to end education discrimination against American Indians. Written for middle grade readers, the book explores the history of settler colonialism, racism as a barrier to education, and the Native-led movement to achieve social justice in California public schools for Native students.

​In this conversation hosted by the Owens Valley Paiute-Shoshone Cultural Center, book creators Sage Andrew Romero, Loralee Sepsey, and Morgan Thompson will discuss their inspiration for sharing Alice’s story, in a conversation moderated by Tsanavi Spoonhunter, citizen of the Northern Arapaho Tribe and descendant of the Lakota Nation.

Alice Piper Speaks Up fills a conspicuous gap in public education about this history-making stand for school desegregation—a victory that preceded the Brown v. Board of Ed ruling that integrated schools nationwide 30 years later. While Alice Piper’s contributions to American civil rights remain woefully under-recognized, the visibility of her legacy grows. Today a life-size statue of Piper sits at the entrance of Big Pine High School, where in 2024 the town celebrated her life and the 100th anniversary of the end of Native American school segregation. In 2024, she was inducted into the California Hall of Fame, and the state legislature passed a resolution to mark June 2—the date of the state court decision—as Alice Piper Day in recognition of “the historic legacy of Alice Piper’s resolve and dedication.” ​