Russell Means

American Indian Movement (AIM) flag

You may have heard recently that Russell Means died.  I'll be completely honest and say that I didn't know who Russell Means was when I first heard that he had died.  In listening to people talk about him, they expressed a deep sadness over his death, noting that he was a strong advocate for all indigenous peoples.  We heard lots about about this advocate's death, because Means was a member of the Oglala Sioux, specifically born on the Pine Ridge Reservation.  He was a child of this community.

Means is probably most well-known for his involvement in the American Indian Movement (AIM).  AIM was formed in 1968 in Minneapolis, Minnesota, by urban Native Americans, according to Wikipedia.  For perhaps a more accurate reflection of AIM, read this quote from the AIM website:

"The movement was founded to turn the attention of Indian people toward a renewal of spirituality which would impart the strength of resolve needed to reverse the ruinous policies of the United States, Canada, and other colonialist governments of Central and South America. At the heart of AIM is deep spirituality and a belief in the connectedness of all Indian people.  During the past thirty years, The American Indian Movement has organized communities and created opportunities for people across the Americas and Canada. AIM is headquartered in Minneapolis with chapters in many other cities, rural areas and Indian Nations.  AIM has repeatedly brought successful suit against the federal government for the protection of the rights of Native Nations guaranteed in treaties, sovereignty, the United States Constitution, and laws. The philosophy of self-determination upon which the movement is built is deeply rooted in traditional spirituality, culture, language and history. AIM develops partnerships to address the common needs of the people. Its first mandate is to ensure the fulfillment of treaties made with the United States. This is the clear and unwavering vision of The American Indian Movement." (Source)  

What I've gathered from community members is that AIM has historically been the group of people who protest the various ways in which US, Canadian and other federal governments continue to seek control over  the indigenous peoples.  If you click here, and scroll down, you can find a brief timeline of AIM's actions.

The most well-known AIM interaction around Pine Ridge is the incident at Wounded Knee.  As I write that, I realize that I need to write a blog post about the Massacre at Wounded Knee at some point, since this still very much affects people today.  The Massacre at Wounded Knee happened in 1890 between the US Government and the Lakota people.  Some historians estimate that 300 people were killed, then eventually placed in a mass grave.  The US Army actually awarded twenty Medals of Honor for their soldiers' acts of bravery.  The Massacre at Wounded Knee is far larger and far more complex than this; I give this very brief mention just to connect to the AIM incident at Wounded Knee.

On February 27, 1973, the AIM seized the town of Wounded Knee and occupied it for 71 days "while the U.S. Marshals Service laid seige."  According to this source:

"What became known as the Wounded Knee Incident of 1973 erupted for many reasons but was mainly due to the opposition of the reservation’s president, Richard "Dick" Wilson. Opponents of Wilson accused him of:

• "Mishandling tribal funds"
• Abuse of his authority; AIM cites the U.S. Commission of Civil Rights alleging that Wilson’s election had been "permeated with fraud"
• Using "brute force" for political means such as his private army the GOON’s (Guardians of the Oglala Nation) that AIM labeled as Wilson’s "official terrorist 'goon squad'"

His opponents also unsuccessfully attempted to impeach him in 1973. In fact, over 150 civil rights complaints had been issued against the reservation government in the years prior to the incident. AIM claims they chose Wounded Knee because of its historical significance. They considered the site of the 1890 Wounded Knee massacre "a prime example of the treatment of Indians since the European invasion".

OSCRO (the Oglala Sioux Civil Rights Organization) was an organization on the Pine Ridge Reservation that attempted to change the poor civil conditions. A meeting was held on February 26, 1973 "to openly discuss their grievances concerning the tribal government". Another meeting was held the next day, February 27 and AIM was summoned "for some assistance," by OSCRO to produce "results".

Dennis Banks states that it was "the Oglala Sioux Civil Rights Organization which called upon [AIM], and we responded". Between 200 and 300 AIM members entered the town on February 26. An official, reliable count of AIM members entering or occupying the town was never recorded and would have been difficult to achieve, but AIM claims that approximately 300 members of their organization entered the village while the government estimates 200."

Whew.  Are you catching all of this?  This has all been a lot for my head to wrap around.  My instinct is to write, "Basically..." but I don't want to do that and can't do that with this.  The AIM is a group of people who believe that they are fighting for the rights of their people.  Their presence at the '73 Wounded Knee Incident was by invitation from the community.  After 71 days, the U.S. Government took over the town of Wounded Knee with a few fatalities of Wounded Knee occupiers.

"To an uninvolved observer, this might have seemed like a defeat of the AIM and Oglala efforts. However, what it accomplished was a focused attention throughout the nation on the crippling problems Native Americans faced, not just on Pine Ridge, but across the country." (Source)

Now, Wilson's GOONs, the Guardians of the Oglala Nation, play into this whole story as well, since they were the private police force that Wilson created in the '70s.  The GOONs are known for the violence they used against AIM and other tribal members.  The GOONs and AIM continued to fight after the Incident at Wounded Knee, killing over 60 people violently in the three years that followed the incident (Source).

Okay, okay, Meredith.  You're frying our brains.

Yep.  I get it.  It's a lot to take in and process.  Perhaps this is old news for those of you reading who were alive in the 1970s, but as a child of the 80s, I'm not familiar with this story at all.

The most interesting part about learning all of this in the Pine Ridge community is hearing the way different people talk about different groups.  I've heard lots of people say, in a hushed tone as someone leaves the room, "She's one of those AIMers."  Or, "He was one of the GOONs."  People are still divided, based on the political or perhaps, activist, labels that each person has chosen.  Since I've had very limited knowledge of these groups and since I was still pre-fetal at the time of this conflict, I don't really know how to respond when people quietly identify others.

I hope that as time goes on, I can hear more of the stories about what it meant/means to be in AIM and what it was like to be a GOON, knowing that both are ways in which the Lakota people chose/choose to live out their values.

**Please don't harshly critique my use of Wikipedia articles.  I was going for fast information, not academic information.