History behind battle celebration

By Patrick Lee | Sunday, July 16, 2006

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Lee is a member of the faculty at Oglala Lakota College

In a recent letter to the editor from Cody Barden (June 24), Mr. Barden wonders why the Lakota are celebrating the June 25, 1876, victory at Little Big Horn considering the loss of American lives that occurred and wonders if the whites in Deadwood should celebrate the loss of Indian lives at Wounded Knee.

That question might linger in the minds of many South Dakotans, and it indicates a severe lack of education in the areas of United States, South Dakota and Indian history. I don't fault Mr. Barden for the question because he is most likely the product of our educational system. He apparently cares enough to ask the question.

A brief comparison of the two historical events will enlighten others who have the same question. The Battle of Little Big Horn was fought on June 25, 1876, when Gen. George Armstrong Custer attacked Sioux and Cheyenne encampments on Indian Land in Montana. The Sioux and Cheyenne were armed and prepared for battle because they knew that Gen. Custer was searching for them and that he intended to kill them. The United States had been attempting to acquire the Black Hills from the Sioux because gold had been discovered and was being mined by trespassing gold miners. The Black Hills had been recognized as Sioux land and was reserved for the Sioux in the Fort Laramie Treaty of 1868. Instead of keeping the trespassers out of the treaty-protected hills, the United States sent Custer to get rid of the Sioux who had refused to sell the land to the United States.

The confrontation that ensued at Little Big Horn was a military engagement. It was a military battle, even though the United States had never formally declared war on the Sioux. Custer was defeated. The Sioux celebrate the victory to this day because it was a victory in which the Sioux defended her people and her land. It is important to know that the Sioux were fighting a defensive battle and that the Sioux warriors were armed. No white women or children were present.

Wounded Knee is another story. In late 1890, Chief Big Foot traveled with his band of men, women and children to Pine Ridge to seek shelter and assistance from the Oglalas at Pine Ridge. When he reached Wounded Knee, his camp was surrounded by United States soldiers of the Seventh Cavalry. The soldiers mounted Hotchkiss gattling guns on the hills surrounding the camp. Chief Big Foot's band consisted of unarmed men, women and children. They were defenseless and were of no threat to the Seventh Cavalry. They were camped on Indian land at Wounded Knee. The soldiers opened fire on the camp, killing over 200 unarmed men, women and children. This was not a United States victory; it was mass murder which reputable historians call a massacre. It was disgraceful, and a disgrace is nothing to celebrate.

The Lakota people have organized an annual Big Foot Ride to commemorate the deaths and to honor the victims of Wounded Knee. It is a showing of respect, honor, sympathy, love and compassion for the spirits of those who were murdered at Wounded Knee.

It is understandable that Mr. Barden and others who were never taught this side of American history would wonder why the Lakota people celebrate the victory at Little Big Horn and why the United States does not celebrate the tragedy at Wounded Knee. It is also understandable that many Lakota people believe that the United States had but one Indian policy in the 19th and 20th centuries: Genocide.