ABSTRACT
Oglala, Minniconjou, Brule, Sicangu, and Hunkpapa elders and headsmen had traveled there to oppose a Bureau of Indian Affairs proposal that threatened to take some of the small amount of land they had left away from them. Lakota elder Lucille Fire Thunder from Wounded Knee District gave a fiery speech in Lakota that day. She lambasted the Bureau for not allowing the people adequate time to review and respond to the proposal that would take Lakota land away from landowners-the deadline for input was a week away. Meetings like that in Porcupine are opportunities for the people to come together and conduct business in the Lakota language, and to address the issues of land, treaty rights, and culture that they hold dear. Lakota people do not leave those issues and traditions to the elected representatives of tribal government. The chapter also presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in this book.
