Page 12 - Brave Bird at Wounded Knee - I Am America

Patsy giggled until Miss Ashman clapped her hands to

start class.
“Franklin, you’re up,” Miss Ashman said, nodding to

Frank. She never used nicknames. Laura turned so Patsy

could see her roll her eyes.

Frank stood at the front of the class to read the
newspaper clipping.

THE ROCKY MOUNTAIN REGISTER
February 28, 1973
INDIAN PROTESTERS

TA K E OV E R S OU T H
DAKO TA D I S T R I C T

On February 27, hundreds of members of the Oglala Lakota Tribe met
with leaders of the American Indian Movement (AIM). After the meet-
ing, about 200 people caravanned to Wounded Knee, the site of an 1890
massacre. Some members of the group held a memorial service at the
grave site of the victims of the massacre. Meanwhile, armed militants in
the group quickly took control of the small district. By evening, police
and FBI agents had surrounded the area. Protesters and police have ex-
changed gunfire.
The government is calling the protesters insurgents and insisting they
leave the district. The protesters are demanding the land promised in an
1868 treaty. They are also accusing the government of violating their civil
rights.
The district of Wounded Knee is located on the Pine Ridge Indian
Reservation. It is home to a couple dozen homes, three churches, and a
trading post. The trading post, which is owned by a white man, sells
snacks and souvenirs to tourists visiting the site of the massacre. Some
witnesses say protesters looted the trading post.

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