ON THE BORDERLINE

Page 24

Part Two: The battle against colonization, with weapon and with spirit

After four years of petitions to Canada for a reserve where his band could settle peacefully, away from ten hostile and vengeful U.S. government, Sitting Bull led his band back to the promised amnesty in South Dakota. Instead, he was quickly arrested and imprisoned.

With Sitting Bull a prisoner, and the Sioux divided in six separate agencies and reserves, the government hoped to lessen his importance as a unifying Sioux leader.

Indeed, Sitting Bull was focus of Indian leadership. Chiefs from many bands regularly sought his counsel, and eastern American newspapers provided extensive coverage. Sitting Bull was a tourist industry in himself.

His reputation as "The Indian Leader" was so clear and unchallenged that in 1883 when the first cross-continental railroad was completed, Sitting Bull was the unanimous choice to represent the real owners of the land.

It is significant to note that no Chinese who had actually built the tunnels and rails were invited or present at Promontory Point, Utah for the driving of the Golden Spike.

Sitting Bull's address that day was to be in his own Lakota language, to be translated to the crowd. It began: "I hate all white people. You are thieves and liars," yet said with an open smile.

So masterful a speaker, Sitting Bull paused occasionally and slightly bowed to the audience, who clapped wildly at the words they did not understand. He continued on for several minutes: "You have taken away our land and made us outcasts"

Needless toe say, the young translator who had been furnished by the U.S. Army did not provide word-for-word translation. He made a short, polite speech and sat down as Sitting Bull accepted cheers from the unsuspecting audience.

Because of his standing and power, over the next nine years Sitting Bull remained a firm block against the further takeover of Indian lands.

Even more, Sitting Bull had gained an international reputation as a "war chief". He was recruited by Buffalo Bill Cody, an infamous buffalo hunter turned circus showman, and was featured in his Wild West Show which toured the United States and Canada.

In 1887, Sitting Bull declined a tour of Europe which would have put him face to face with his "Great Mother," the Queen. He returned to Standing Rock Reservation where the attempts to take over Indian land had never ceased.

For two years, Sitting Bull was able to keep the Great Reservations of the Sioux Nations united. But finally, in 1889, under constant pressure and divide and conquer tactics, the Sioux lands were divided. Six smaller reservations were created, islands of separate nations surrounded now by an ocean of white settlers.

"Indians," were Sitting Bull's words, "there are no Indians left but me."

The Ghost Dance Religion

While the west was being won, or stolen, and a large number of Indians had been converted to Christianity, Indian ways had not died out.

Christian teachings of whatever denomination had one remaining promise for divine justice ? the Return of Christ. Adventists who believed that America would be the scene of God's new Kingdom were part of American history.

The Mormons, Mennonites, Amish and many Utopian groups had established their own promised lands. The suffering, death and resurrection of Jesus at the hands of Roman conquerors were no lost on Indians who say themselves victims to America. The Indians clearly needed a messiah.

In the late 1880s there arose from obscurity a Piute Medicine Man, Wovoka, who announced to the Indians that Christ had indeed returned ? as an American Indian.

This message captivated the suppressed dream of Christian and non-Christian Indians alike. A messiah to redeem the land, renew the buffalo, clear the white exploiters from the land and return it to the glories of yesterday.

The (Holy) Ghost religion asked only that the believers purify themselves and dance in a sacred way until the messiah appeared. As they daced they would be filled with spirit, and by wearing their medicine Ghost Dance shirts, would be protected from the solder's bullets.

The Ghost Dance spread rapidly across the northern Indian bands. Tens of thousands met in their sacred places to join in the dance for their survival.

But to a federal government in Washington, the spectre of a united Indian movement, sparked by an Indian messiah, was impossible to tolerate.

A fearful government ordered the arrest of the Ghost Dance leadership demanding a stop to the "superstitious savages" who might be misled into believing in a messiah.

Sitting Bull, a virtual prisoner in his cabin at Standing Rock, was now 56 years old. He had taken no direct part in leading the Ghost Dance movement, although his name was high on a list of suspected dancers.

Early on December 3, 1890, his cabin was surrounded by 50 Indian tribal police under control of the government Indian agent. A few hundred yards away were another two troops of mounted police, in case the powers of this chief and Medicine Man proved too much for 50 armed men, as it had to General Custer.

Sitting Bull, who was sleeping on his cabin floor, was awakened by loud pounding. He was allowed to dress and escorted outside.

In a short struggle, he was shot, first through the side, wounded again, and finally shot point black through the head.

Sitting Bull was dead.

Wounded Knee

As news of the assassination of this revered leader spread through Indian country, an even more alarmed government took action.

Indian bands which were not accounted for on reservations were ordered to be rounded up and escorted by cavalry troops.

Afraid for their safety in the panic of December 1890, a tattered group of 250 Minneconjou Sioux had been joined by about 100 fleeing Hunkpapas, followers of Sitting Bull. Some of these 350 Sioux men, women and children had been Ghost Dancers.

Chief Bigfoot's name had appeared on the same Ghost Dance list of "fomenters of disturbances" which ad led to the arrest and death of Sitting Bull.

As soon as Chief Bigfoot learned of the order for his arrest, he began leading his people toward Pine Ridge Reservation, where he hoped to gain protection from Chief Red Cloud. Red Cloud had been a signatory on the Treaty of 1868 which hard guaranteed protection as long as the grass grew, the waters flowed, and the sky blue ? to the Black Hills (the sacred Paha-0Sapa), the great Sioux reserve and the Sioux nations.

The Minneconjou had believed in the protection of the Ghost Dance as they walked ? 350 men, women and children ? through the blizzard over Christmas. They were cold, poorly clothed and had short provisions as they neared Porcupine Creek, east of Pine Ridge. It was December 28, 1890 when they first saw the four troops of horse cavalry.

Chief Bigfoot was seriously ill in his wagon. His nose dripped blood, and with every forced word blood spurted from his mouth to his blanket. Bigfoot ordered a white flag to be shown.

By later afternoon, soldiers under the command of Major Samuel Whiteside Seventh U.S. Cavalry arrived. It was the same Seventh Cavalry that General Custer had led to defeat in 1876, 14 years earlier.

Some of the same Indian warriors who had taken part in the Battle of Little Big Horn, under Sitting Bull, Crazy Horse and Gall, were now present at Porcupine Creek. Many soldiers of the regiment still harboured hatred in their memories of the destruction of Custer's Last Stand.

Considering the approaching dark, Major Whiteside called up a heated ambulance for the critically ill Chief Bigfoot and gave orders that the entire group should march under guard toward Wounded Knee Creek, on the way to Pine Ridge.

It was near dark when the 120 men and 230 women and children arrived at Wounded Knee Creek. Called Chankpse Opi Wakpala in Lakota, the creek twisted like the broken back leg of a dog. Somewhere along this creek, Crazy Horse had been buried by his mother after his assassination.

Major Whitesie provided some shelter and food to the Indian camp and ordered his troops to surround the site. The camp was in a small valley surrounded by low hills. The troops also mounted two Hotchkiss guns prepared to rapid fire cannon shells into the camp.

In the darkness that night, the remainder of the Seventh Cavalry arrived, commanded by Colonel James W. Forsyth. Forsyth's orders were to take the entire band to Omaha, Nebraska, and to a military prison.

Because his troops had missed their Christmas three days prior by being in the saddle, and to help keep his soldiers and officers warm, Colonel Forsyth ordered the whisky barrels distributed to his men.

He also ordered two more Hotchkiss guns to be set up, thus providing a crossfire into the Indian camp, in case they proved to be hostile or uncooperative.

At dawn, with the sound of the bugle, thee Indians were given light rations and were ordered out of their shelter, such as it was. In the dim cold daylight, soldiers were ordered to search all personal belongings for hidden weapons.

Tearing apart bedrolls, breaking open trunks and ripping apart carefully bundled possessions, there were so few weapons found that the soldiers were ordered to conduct personal body searches of each man, woman or child.

In the cold, person by person, blankets and heavy coats were removed and each person was hand searched.

With the humiliation, anger and confusion, only two more weapons were found, one a new Winchester rifle belonging to a deaf youth who could not hear the commands.

Somewhere, a shot was heard the troops, with rifles and Hotchkiss guns, opened fire on the crowded scene below.

In minutes, Chief Bigfoot lay dying. AS the defenceless Indians tried to flee they were cut down by the troops who surrounded them.

Horse mounted troops followed those who reached the gullies and ravines around the valley. Few escaped. In their wild shooting, the soldiers shot down many of their own companions who now lay among the shattered bo