The U.S. Senate on Dec. 15 unanimously approved a bill sponsored by U.S. Rep. Dusty Johnson (R-SD) to return sacred land to an American Indian tribe and it now heads to the president’s desk to be signed into law.
The Wounded Knee Sacred Site and Memorial Act, H.R. 165, pertains to Dec. 29, 1890, when a group of Lakota Indians led by Chief Spotted Elk had made camp near Wounded Knee Creek on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota.
U.S. Army 7th Cavalry troops were sent to disarm the Lakota. A struggle occurred, a shot rang out, and the Army opened fire on the largely unarmed group, killing an estimated 350 to 375 Lakota Indians. Twenty-five U.S. soldiers also died.
“Nearly 135 years after hundreds of lives were lost in the Wounded Knee Massacre, the time is now here to properly memorialize the lost and preserve the land,” Rep. Johnson said on Monday. “I look forward to seeing the president sign this into law to ensure the land remains sacred for generations to come.”
Once enacted, H.R. 165 directs the U.S. Department of the Interior to complete all actions necessary to place approximately 40 acres of land in Oglala Lakota County, S.D., into restricted fee status for the Oglala Sioux Tribe and the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe.
Restricted fee status refers to land that is owned by a tribe or tribal member but is subject to restrictions by the United States against sale or transfer or encumbrance (e.g., liens, leases, or rights-of-way) by operation of law.
The bill requires the land to be held and maintained as a memorial and sacred site, as outlined by the document titled Covenant Between the Oglala Sioux Tribe and the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe dated Oct. 21, 2022.
The bill also prohibits commercial development and gaming activity on the land, according to the Congressional Record bill summary.
The Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe and the Oglala Sioux Tribe coordinated with Rep. Johnson on devising the legislation during the previous session of Congress. While the former bill passed the U.S. House of Representatives, it stalled in the Senate. Rep. Johnson reintroduced it during the current congressional session and the House approved it on Jan. 22.
The identical Senate companion bill is led by U.S. Sens. Mike Rounds (R-SD) and John Thune (R-SD).