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Lakota Sioux |
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The western Sioux people and the language are represented by the term “Lakota”.
The Oglala Sioux nation divided into seven tribes in the late 1700’s. They
lived in most of South Dakota, Montana, Wyoming and Nebraska. They hunted and
gathered for food, relying largely on the buffalo for survival. The western
expansion of white settlers and miners promoted the Red Cloud Wars of the
1860’s. This was the only time American Indians successfully waged war against
the US Government. In 1868, with the signing of the Treaty of Fort Laramie, the
Lakota people were given the land of the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation. This
original treaty included the lands of the Black Hills and a much larger portion
of South Dakota. Since the discovery of gold and the influx of miners the
treaty has been broken, and the Lakota have been forced to live in a smaller
area with fewer natural resources. In 1890 the US Cavalry killed 300 men, women
and children at Wounded Kneed Creek. This massacre has become a symbol of
oppression for all Lakota people. Additional oppression has taken place over
the broken Fort Laramie Treaty. This issue has been taken all the way to the
Supreme Court to try to get the US government to honor the original treaty
(United States vs. Sioux Nation of Indians.) In 1980, the Supreme Court would
not grant the land back to the Lakota people. Instead, the government granted
them a settlement of $17.5 million dollars for the land at 5% interest per year
since 1877, totaling 106 million at that time. The Lakota have rejected this
money due to the principle of the treaty promise and also because the land is
not valued for its financial resources, but a loss of a place that is sacred to
the people and believed to have healing power. The money has been place into an
account where it continues to draw interest today.
Information from:
American and Indian Reservation and Trust Areas by Veronica Tiller. Tiller
Research Inc. Albuquerque, NM, 1996. p. 560-561. And
www.airc.org/living/housing.html . |
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