1. Cultures Clash on the Prarie A PERSONAL VOICE ZITKALA-SˇA (Red Bird) “ I cried aloud . . . and heard them gnaw off one of my thick braids. Then I lost my spirit. Since the day I was taken from my mother I had suffered extreme indignities. . . . And now my long hair was shingled like a coward’s! In my anguish I moaned for my mother, but no one came. . . . Now I was only one of many little animals driven by a herder.” —The School Days of an Indian Girl Zitkala-S ˇA was born on the Sioux reservation and went by the name Gertrude Bonnin until she became older. She was a Native American activist from the 1920’s and 1930’s.

The Culture of the Plains Indians Native American culture is quite different from European culture. There had been a struggle to retain native lands in the U.S. since Jamestown. The Great Plains were the last refuge of tribes that had ventured out onto its vast spaces. These tribes, The Sioux, Cheyenne, Crow, Blackfeet, Arapaho, Comanche, and others had developed horse culture and spent their time hunting the buffalo that roamed the Plains. There were some conflicts over territory but the European idea of land ownership was completely foreign. In general there was a belief in a Great Spirit that created everything. Family and tribal ties were very strong and leaders ruled by counsel, not by force.

Settlers Push Westward Congress didn’t let the Civil War get in the way of helping settlers move west. In 1862 the Homestead Act was passed and families could move onto lands for almost nothing. Farms were big and so was mining. Native American claims to the land were ignored or met with hostlilty.

The Government Restricts Native Americans Sitting Bull Custer Black Kettle Chivington There are many stories about the Indian Wars on the Plains during the 1860’s and 1870’s. As settlers expanded into native American grounds conflict occurred. In 1864, during the Civil War there was a great fear of Indian attacks after a family east of Denver was massacred. This led to the Sand Creek Massacre, where Colorado troops led by Col. John Chivington attacked peaceful Indians and butchered hundreds of women and children. The peaceful Chief, Black Kettle, escaped but was killed by Gen. George A. Custer four years later. There was war on the Plains and in 1876 Custer made his last stand and was killed by Sitting Bull’s men.

The Battle of Wounded Knee Dec. 29,1890: Massacre Black Elk Ghost Dance A PERSONAL VOICE BLACK ELK “ I did not know then how much was ended. When I look back . . . I can still see the butchered women and children lying heaped and scattered all along the crooked gulch. . . . And I can see that something else died there in the bloody mud, and was buried in the blizzard. A people’s dream died there. It was a beautiful dream.” —Black Elk Speaks