Topic: Social and Cultural Issues
The Republic of Lakotah is Legit The Republic of Lakotah has come under fire, of late. Public opinion has counted them out. Here is why public opinion is wrong!by Hickory Hendrickson
(Libertarian)
Sunday, January 13, 2008
By now, most freedom lovers have read, or been told about, the Republic of Lakotah They know about the group of activists withdrawing from treaties with the US.
What they read, however, might be misleading.
The popular opinion, among non-Lakotah, is the Republic has no chance at success. Many authors have written about the division in the Lakotah, and lack of tribal support. Some have even accused Russell Means of hijacking the movement.
While accurate in some of their broad assumptions, these writers are missing the big picture. The Republic of Lakotah is alive and well!
The first point of concern among Lakotah, and non-Lakotah, is where the Tribal Government stands on the issue.
"All tribal governments whether formal or de facto, are organized as an undefined corporation under the restrictions of the Indian Reorganization Act." said Russell Means, Lakotah activist and member of the Lakotah Freedom Delegation. "They are also bound by all of the subsequent rulings of the Department of Interior, and it's Bureau of Indian Affairs".
The tribal government of the Rosebud and Cheyenne River tribes released a joint statement condemning the Republic. .
"Our Grandfathers fought and died for these treaties; they are the backbone of Sioux Tribes' legal relationship with the United States," Rosebud Tribe President Rodney Bordeaux said. "They protect our remaining lands, our water, our resources, our rights and our sovereignty."
Let's look closer.
"Our Grandfathers fought and died for those treaties." - True.
So did the grandfathers of the Lakotah Freedom movement. Regardless of these treaties, the US stole land granted to natives in said treaties.
"They are the backbone of Sioux Tribes' legal relationship with the United States." -Questionable?
If the treaties, are the tribal leaders backbone, it would explain why they seem paralyzed. The backbone, has been broken!
"They protect our remaining lands, our water, our resources, our rights and our sovereignty."-Not True!
The treaties have never done so in the past.
Are the tribal leaders, equivalent to our congressional leaders?
Neither congress, nor tribal leaders, act in the interest of the people who put them in power. The only fight they participate in, is the fight for a bigger paycheck!
The use of the term Sioux by the tribal leaders, shows how out of touch with the people they are. According to Wikipedia Sioux, is an offensive term coined by their traditional enemies, over two-hundred years ago.
Here is another part of that statement:
"The announcement had no practical effect -- Means does not formally represent any tribal government."-true
Kind of like, George Washington, did not formally, represent the Crown! One point for Means!
Rosebud, Tribe President, Rodney Bordeaux helped draft the joint statement.
"They protect our remaining lands, our water, our resources, our rights and our sovereignty." Bordeaux wrote, "The United States' theft of Sioux lands and resources has placed the Sioux people in abject poverty on the reservations. I am in favor of asking countries around the world for foreign aid to rehabilitate our tribes and reservations."
Bordeaux, is on the right track, but shouldn't he look to the US government instead of foreign.
Bordeaux also said, the treaties of 1851 and 1868 still protected tribes.
"Without these treaties, the United States Congress and the multinational corporations that control it will attempt to steal all the remaining treaty lands and sovereignty we have left through their legal institutions." said Bordeaux
What faith! It's like someone who left their keys in the car, and had it stolen. They then buy a new car, and leave the keys in it. When asked why the keys are still in the car, they say, my neighbors will watch it!
Where were the neighbors the first time around!
In the case of the Lakotah, their car has been stolen more then once!
Many of the Sioux people, who Bordeaux claims are in opposition of the Republic, know nothing about it. They have no access to TV or the Internet and tribal leaders have made no attempt to find out what they think.
It's understandable for tribal leaders not to support the Republic, their jobs are on the line!
What about you? Why don't you support them? What do you have to loose?
The Republic of Lakotah is Legit! Spread the word!
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2008 Hickory Hendrickson, all rights reserved.
Published: Sunday, January 13, 2008
Last modified: Monday, January 14, 2008
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I have been following this on the internet and have been wondering how many of the Lakotah people support this move. I am on thier blog and don't see many native people there. It could be because most of the people don't have access to the internet. The government has kept them so poor that they can't afford it. I think the tribal leaders are not doing there job.
It seems pretty clear that these opposing tribal leaders are worried about their private pocket books. The tribal leaders should be ashamed of themselves if they are living comfortably while their people suffer. They have become no different than the U.S. Congress men and women are to the U.S. citizens. Get it together, meet face to face for as many days as it takes to unite, but stop airing your cowardess laundry to the media. It's time to stop the tears of our brothers and sisters.
This article is not correct: For the lakot apeople, it is not the elected tribal leaders who are charged with the diplomacy concerning the Fort Laramie Treaty of 1868. the organization created in 1893 for that purpose is the Teton Sioux Nation Treaty Council, composed of traditional elders. This organization has issued a formal response to the Press Release of Russe4ll Means. Thie spokesperson of that organization is Charmaine White Face. The statement says that the Treaty of Fort Laramie of 1868 inculded a provision for its enforcement. Article 12 of the Treaty stipulated that it would require three-fourths of the Lakota adult male vote to change any of it. This was expressly stated in order to protect the land, the people and the lakota way of life. Mr. Rusell Means, the statement underlines, is only one man and he did not obtain three-fourths of the Lakota adult male approval; he, therefore cannot change anything concerning the treaty. However, his efforts remind the world that an international treaty still exists betweren the Lakota nation and the US government.
Lakota traditional elders (Teton Sioux Nation Treaty Council) and OST (Oglala Sioux Tribe) elected tribal representatives met jointly on Pine Ridge Reservation on Jan 28-30 to re-affirm treaty relationship with the USA. For any further info, consult article on Lakota Country Times, where telephone numbers for Public Relation officer for the traditional Treaty council, and the Executive Secretary of OST are listed.
The Freedom of the Lekota Nation means Freedom to me and my family. And the only hope of making this great nation of nations the promise that our creator promised to our forfather Abraham.
Please let me know what I my do to support this most blessed cause.
Something about your comment strikes true. Maybe it's the fact that your words seem to come from the heart. Thank You!
In answer to your question........what you can do to help is demand accountability from the so called Leadership of the Republic of Lakotah. The only hope (very slim) for this new vision of a Free Republic would be for Mr. Means and his flunkies/thugs to abdicate their thrones.....I mean leadership positions. The people in the area will not support Russell Means or most of his thugs. They have known him.....or heard him tooting his horn for decades now. They are fed up with his attention grabbing, wanabee king attitude. Means is doing more harm than good to the Lakota Freedom Movement. He is no longer the leader he once was. Years of abusing women and beating up old men make him an object of scorn embarrasment to most Natives. People would follow Means if he had ever done anything that actualy helped anyone. His famous takeovers and standoffs made him famous and gave him lots of bragging rights but what really happened was Indians lost their jobs or had their homes looted and ransacked by those very same thugs that are now the founding members of the Republic of Lakotah.
You might also ask Russell why such a "Free" country: censors and restricts free-speech, keeps everything a closely guarded secret, preaches racism, and is not supported by anyone who actually lives on the reservations other then his elitest clique of family and friends.
What irks me most is that the Golden Boy of the Republic and the newest member of the arostocracy is most likely a federal agent who was recruited durring his years in prison. The Republic of Lakotah endorses and elevates the status of this coward who learned to be a Lakota by reading books in prison. The Coward often boasts that he "felt disrespected as a war-lord" so he killed the one who insulted him. His WarLordship however, always seems to leave out the method by which his antagonist was murdered. In a drug induced frenzy, caused by years of huffing paint, the coward, very bravely, snuck up behind the Lakota brother and stabbed him in the back.
The Lakota people the cause for L akota Freedom is a noble one. The ROL is a
Your article sounds like you are for the Freedom Fighters then your posting dated July 17, 2008 is the opposite. Which one are you for? For or against? I have just spent 6 weeks trying to write a research paper for my college english class in favor of Russell Means efforts. Now you remind me what a jack ass he's been all these years with your later posting. ugh! I haven't even written my closing paragraph.
The Lakota Freedom movement is alive and well. It has been for over 100 years! Today people like Alfred Bone Shirt, Phyllis Young, and countless others are working outside of the spotlight just as they always have. They are the real heroes. Russell Means represents only himself, and his followers are either his family or his other well-to-do actor and artist friends. Hense my reference to the ROL Arostocracy in my earlier post.
I have been to the Republic of Lakotah three times since I wrote the original article. I stayed over a week durring each visit. The overwhelming attitude of the people (especially those on the Reservations) towards Means was one of ridicule and contempt. Many people also expressed the opinion that Means was out of work, needed a job and wanted to run for office again but knew he had very little support and the media wouldn't listen to him anymore. He hoped to gain media attention for his campaign by exploiting the Lakota Freedom Movement and using it as a platform for being sucessfully ellected this time around. This opinion seems to have been at least partly true as Means is now running for Pine Ridge Tribal President only a few months after inventing the Republic of Lakotah publicity scam and solliciting thousands of dollars from ROL supporters who mainly live in foriegn countries and know Means only as the actor who everyone fell in love with after his role in Last of The Mohicans..
The cause for Lakota Freedom is very noble and has at it's roots great leaders like Sitting Bull and Crazy Horse. The people who live in the third world ghetto that is the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation are what Lakota Freedom is about. Russell Means is no Sitting Bull......Russell Means is to the people of Pine Ridge Reservation as David Rockefeller is to Americans. He has a few fans but those in the know........well...... they might not share the same sentiment.
I can understand you disscuragment and I share the same feelings in regard to the months of work and thousand of my own dollars I put into researching and trying to spread what I thought was a great and noble Idea. I am a fan of freedom, not fame, and I can't honestly continue supporting the ROL after learning what I believe to be the truth.
Just a suggestion...but you might change the emphasis of your paper to reflect the noble character and determination of the real Lakota Freedom Movement which Means is only a small part of. Hell it could even be your closing paragraph.
Feel free to email me with any questions or to further disscuss this matter. You can reach me anytime at
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2008 Hickory Hendrickson, all rights reserved.