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By Kanook – Tlingit Nation March – 2010 an Open Account to The

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By Kanook – Tlingit Nation March – 2010 an Open Account to The By Kanook – Tlingit Nation March – 2010 An open account to the people of the world and its Political Prisoners On a bright sunny day in June, 1975, two Special Agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation chasing after a Pine Ridge Reservation Indian who they believed stole a pair of used Cowboy Boots were driving across Indian Country when they were killed. And the Saga of modern day Indian justice was played out with the expected results – some Indian had to pay! On June 26, 1975, a date that can be compared to that of September 11th, 2001 as when the protected rights of an American citizen were thrown out the window, and the power elite continued their march to world domination, controlling the population of the world through their purchasing of the Judicial and Political systems of the United States of America. Not to mention their absolute control of the commercial media. What happened on that day, a day noted by some as another nail driven into the rights of the indigenous population of North America, a day that effectively took the life of an innocent man, albeit he is still alive and locked behind steel bars isolating him from the society he loved and embraced with the zeal that many men in other societies do not or cannot. Leonard Peltier was born on September 12th 1944, and as of today is 65 ½ years old and of those 65 ½ years he has spent 32 years and 10 months in a federal jail. He was born to Leo Peltier and Alvina Robidea, sharing their Anishinabe-Lakota ancestry and spent his youth living with his grandparents on the Turtle Mountain Indian Reservation which is located in northern North Dakota and is the land-base for the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians. Leonard Peltier became part of the American Indian Movement (“AIM”) during its inception during the late 1960s, and it was as one of their leaders that he became involved in the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation assaults by the U.S. Government, who, it has been noted has never apologized for its historical treatment of the Indigenous people of the United States…granted they like other nations has offered money to the tribes of various locations, considered bribes by the local populations who in most cases have never accepted the “hand of cash” from the White Father. June 26th, 1975 was not a day that just appeared on the horizon for American Indian’s, it was preceded by events that began on February 27th, 1973 some 849 days earlier when a group of AIM members took part in a 71-day siege at Wounded Knee, South Dakota in an occupation meant to draw attention to the 1890 massacre of at least 150 Lakota Sioux men, women and children by the United States 7th Calvary at a camp near Wounded Knee Creek. Beginning on February 27th, 1973 American Indians occupied the Sacred Heart Church and the Gildersleeve Trading Post. Albeit there were “periodic” negotiations between the AIM spokespeople and the United States government negotiators, shooting erupted at times between the two entities. On the 27th, AIM members and members of the Oglala Lakota (Sioux) of the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation who opposed the Oglala tribal chairman “Richard a ‘Dick” Wilson - who sported a colorful background as an individual who was in charge of the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, protested against his form of corrupt governing. It should be strongly noted that the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, to this day, is the poorest registered entity in the United State of America as it was on June 27th, 1973. AIM and the local traditional chiefs with their tribal members were making an attempt to demonstrate the intolerable conditions suffered on the Pine Ridge reservation whereas what little employment that was available was controlled by Dick Wilson, the half-breed tribal chairman, who was considered by the government and non-Indians outside of the reservation as an “obedient” authority to all, except to those he represented…the Indians. As seen, Dick Wilson allocated the few jobs and programs on the reservation to his friends and family, who like him were half-breeds (or to be politically correct of mixed-blood heritage). Under the guidance of the Bureau of Indian Affairs, a noted corrupt government agency, originally created under the Department of War – Dick and his BIA supervisors and accountants sold the gazing rights located on Tribal Lands to the non-Indian ranchers bordering the lands at very cheap rates, this procedure increased Dick’s status with the White ranchers as did the inter-marriage between the Indians and the Whites. Supposedly under AIM threats, where evidence has never been forthcoming, Dick and his family were placed under “protective custody” on February 23rd, 1973…four days before AIM and the Pine Ridge Indians began their protest. Which would lead someone to believe that at least 4-days ahead of time, someone knew of the intentions of the local Indian population and the direct participation of the AIM movement, initiating a protest against Dick Wilson’s government? The protest was a direct response to the “marginalization” of the full-blooded Lakota’s on the reservation, whereas over the years most did not bother to participate in the tribal elections because of the corruption in the voting process, and in 1973 decided to act on the inconsistencies in their supposed fair and equal tribal government. On the very same day that the protestors setup shop at Wounded Knee, the United States military and government officers (who were absent without leave on September 11th, 2001) surrounded Wounded Knee. Albeit there is a dispute on whether or not the government forces cordoned the town before or after the takeover, but according to a former South Dakota United States Senator James George Abourezk, “on February 25th, 1973 the United States Department of Justice sent 50- United States Marshals to the Pine Ridge Reservation to be available in the case of a civil disturbance.” Historical records have proven time and time again that the United States government has NEVER done anything “just in case” something might happen to an Indian Population, their NEVER hidden agenda was and is to put down with force if necessary any discord among the Indigenous people that they conquered, stripping their land and depriving them of a way of life. There is no reason to argue this fact, other than a concerted effort by the invading winners, to rewrite history and cover the actual deed committed against the Indians of North America. AIM, on the other hand, argues it came to town for an open meeting with the Dick Wilson government, who by this time was secured in a safe environment by the United States government, within hours the U.S. Marshalls and the military had set up roadblocks, cordoned off the area and started arresting people leaving town… the people who stayed behind the cordoned off area prepared to defend themselves against the organized government aggressions – by the morning of the 28th of February both side were firmly entrenched. Three-weeks previous to all of this, Dick Wilson had survived an impeachment hearing organized by the traditional leaders of Pine Ridge, and helped by both a local civil rights organization and some urban AIM members – it is noted that Dick had manipulated the results of the investigation into the reason for his impeachment, twisting the arms of the impeachment committee, and the final vote. It is because of his “Tricky Dick” ways that he and the U.S. government expected the next move to be a wild-wild-west gun battle in the streets of Wounded Knee – he and the U.S. Marshalls turned the tribal headquarters in Pine Ridge into an armed encampment, complete with machine gun emplacements on top of the administration buildings – he was ready for those bloody redskins. AIM and the traditional leader realize this would be a battle they’d NEVER win, consequently on the morning of the February 27th, 1973 they truly came to town to powwow – naturally as seen time and time again it is very rare that the United States government will powwow with the redskin unless the White Father informs his redskin brother it will be under Washington D.C. conditions – you know that and so do I…case closed. Five days before the siege, President Richard Nixon in an effort to distance himself from the upcoming confrontation travels to China, a tricky move at best. In the end, a decision was made to make a last-stand at the tiny village of Wounded Knee, the site of the last massacre of the “Indian Wars”, the decision made based on the hope that public sympathy would calm the hand of Wilson’s cadre and the heavily fortified government forces – it worked, somewhat. The location soon became a “media” circus such as it was, being that most of the media except those friendly with Wilson and his gang were stopped at the roadblocks. Albeit the media was present, the location soon became a violent theater of guerilla warfare. It was reported by John Sayer that, "The equipment maintained by the military while in use during the siege included fifteen armored personal carriers, clothing, rifles, grenade launchers, flares, and 133,000 rounds of ammunition, for a total cost, including the use of maintenance personnel from the national guard of five states and pilot and planes for aerial photographs, of over half a million dollars"! The “precise” statistics of the United States government force at “Wounded Knee” vary, but needless to say the force was significantly sufficient to overcome the small band of Indians, a force that included federal marshals, FBI agents, the National Guard (military), armored vehicles, rapid fire machine and helicopter carrying rapid fire weapons, M-16s, and M-79 grenade launchers.
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