Spring 2025
The 1973 occupation of Wounded Knee was one of the most significant events of Indigenous activism in the latter half of the 20th century. Lasting 71 days, the occupation was labeled by the U.S Marshals as “the longest disorder” in its history. But what was the oppressive historical context of the occupation, and how does its legacy persist in more modern Indigenous activism?
Following World War II, many Indigenous communities were increasingly upset by a continuation of deceiving federal Indian policies and a push towards urbanization, displacing Indigenous people off of their native land. After decades of frustration and dealing with the federal government without significant improvement, some young Native Americans turned to more direct forms of action in the 1960s. Specifically, in 1968, the American Indian Movement (AIM) was formed in Minneapolis, Minnesota, to help organize protests and protect Indigenous peoples from police. In 1973, AIM coordinated the occupation of Wounded Knee, setting up an autonomous area near a sacred creek that lies within the Pine Ridge Indian reservation in southern South Dakota. Importantly, the Wounded Knee occupation was on the same site of the 1890 Wounded Knee Massacre, where more than 250 Lakota women, children, and soldiers were murdered by the U.S Army. Holding this symbolic and historical weight, Wounded Knee was chosen by AIM’s leadership as a site to occupy and demand change in tribal leadership and recognition of the Fort Laramie Treaty. This treaty, in particular, granted Indigenous rights to the Black Hills and autonomy from the U.S. government. After 71 days, and the death of two Indigenous men, a group of Indigenous elders advised AIM to end the occupation: the standoff ended with the government taking no substantial action to recognize Indigenous treaties.
One of the most influential aspects of the Wounded Knee Occupation was its widespread visibility and press coverage. Both nationally and internationally, the occupation was being reported extensively and brought attention to Indigenous sovereignty across the globe. In addition to the occupation itself, the standoff being located at Wounded Knee reminded occupiers that they were on the same sacred ground where many of the Indigenous ancestors were murdered. This spatial continuity was a stark reminder of the 1890 massacre and how injustices and dispossession against Indigenous people continued into the twentieth century. Though often remembered as a singular flashpoint of Indigenous activism, the occupation built on the lasting momentum of the 1960s and continued to spark similar events, such as the 1978 Longest Walk and later the 2016 Standing Rock pipeline protest.
Indigenous activism remains prevalent today, both within and beyond Native communities. Leonard Peltier, a prominent Indigenous leader and AIM member, was controversially arrested two years after the occupation in 1975 on the count of a double murder. After nearly five decades of national and international advocacy to prove his innocence, advocates convinced President Biden to release Peltier from prison in 2025 in one of his final acts as President. The arrest and recent release of Leonard Peltier are symbolic of the remnants of oppression from the Wounded Knee occupation that Indigenous people continue to grapple with today. But it is also representative of the resilience and power that Indigenous communities will always have. As Peltier put it, “They may have imprisoned me, but they never took my spirit!”
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References
Calloway, Colin G. 2023. First Peoples: A Documentary Survey of American Indian History. 7th ed. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s.
Castle, Elizabeth, and Christina King, dirs. 2018. Warrior Women. ITVS.
NDN Collective. 2025. “Leonard Peltier Released from 49 Years of Wrongful Incarceration.” NDN Collective. https://ndncollective.org/leonard-peltier-released-from-49-years-of-wrongful-incarceration/.
Nelson, Stanley, dir. 2008. Wounded Knee. Firelight Media.
PBS. 2023. “Sitting Bull and the Wounded Knee Massacre.” The American Buffalo. Aired October 17, 2023. PBS.
U.S. Marshals Service. 2025. “Incident at Wounded Knee.” U.S. Marshals Service. https://www.usmarshals.gov/who-we-are/history/historical-reading-room/incident-wounded-knee.
