CPT in the USA

CPT in South Dakota

Seven Council Fires Camp: An Opportunity for Christian Peacemaking

On March 22, 1999 in Pierre, SD, seven Lakota men established the "First Fire of the Oceti Sakowin (Seven Council Fires) camp on La Framboise Island after more than 200 people demonstrated against the U.S. Congress turning Treaty land over to the state of South Dakota. Spiritual leaders conducted ceremonies and lit a sacred fire at the camp-in site as a reminder that the aboriginal and Treaty rights of the Oceti Sakowin nation are not extinguished. The camp-in participants are committed to a nonviolent presence across from the SD capitol on La Framboise Island, part of the 200,000 acres in question. They will remain there until the congressional decision, called Title VI: Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe, Lower Brule Sioux Tribe and State of South Dakota Terrestrial Wildlife Habitat Restoration Act of 1999, or the "Mitigation Act", is repealed.

Christian Peacemaker Teams (CPT) was invited to be observers of this nonviolent camp-in calling for the reversal of the Mitigation Act. Various church groups have endorsed CPT's presence and local congregations are invited to join and support Lakota people and CPTers on La Framboise Island. Here's how you can help:

How Christian Peacemaker Teams Became Involved

Christian Peacemaker Teams (CPT) came to Pierre in response to an invitation from the traditional elders of the Lakota (Sioux) people and the encouragement of church based representatives in Pine Ridge. The CPT presence on LaFramboise Island in the Missouri River is designed to help prevent the outbreak of violence of the sort widely associated with the deaths at Wounded Knee in 1973. The presence by committed nonviolent Christians sends a message to local troublemakers and law enforcement bodies that the world is watching.

This is an important opportunity for Christians who want to witness to our nonviolent faith to make a very concrete statement with their lives. Although the presence on LaFramboise Island has been largely peaceful until now, there have been racist incidents and occasional harassment, and gunshots have been fired into the camp. As the deadline to remove the camp approaches, the possibility exists that Federal or State Forces may use violent force to remove the Lakota people from the island. CPT is present to document these events and to help prevent an escalation of the violence.

Related Resources

CPTnet releases:

Books:

Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee -- Dee Brown
In the Spirit of Crazy Horse -- Peter Matthiessen
Lakota Woman -- Mary Crow Dog
Dammed Indians
God is Red -- Vine Deloria
Walking in the Sacred Manner -- Mark St. Pierre & Tilda Long Soldier

Internet Resources:

for people who may want to delve into the history, and legal questions:

A Life or Death Last Stand: The Story of the Laframboise Island Occupation, written by local freelance journalist and camp supporter Jon Lurie, gives a broad overview of the historical and present-day legal issues surrounding the LaFramboise Island occupation.

U.S. Code, Title 25 has almost everything you'd need to find about Native American law. Find more at http://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/

Native American Graves Protection Act

Clinton Executive Order on Indian Sacred Sites

U.S. Supreme Court case on the Black Hills U.S. vs Sioux Nation of Indians, 448 U.S. 371 (1980) No. 79-639. Argued March 24, 1980. Decided June 30, 1980.
http://laws.findlaw.com/US/448/371.html

Lone Wolf vs. Hitchcock 224 U.S. 448 (1912)
http://thorpe.ou.edu/treatises/

US Commission on Civil Rights report on South Dakota: The section on Concerns, Conclusions and Recommendations is the most important to look over.