Native American Issues

Pending the results of management plan vetting currently under way, the National Park Service is primed to turn administrative responsibilities for the South Unit of Badlands National Park over to the Oglala Sioux Tribe for management as America's first tribal national park.

Devils Tower National Monument, the first national monument, celebrates its 102nd birthday on September 24. The tower is a mecca for climbing, but managing the sport requires the National Park Service to respect Native American cultural values and traditions. The annual June closing of recreational climbing is designed to do that.

The new Tribal Connections interpretive site at Devils Tower National Monument features a dramatic sculpture by renowned Japanese artist Junkyu Muto. Muto’s Wind Circle/Sacred Circle of Smoke sculpture, the third in his world “peace sculpture” series, symbolizes Devils Tower as a sacred place for Native Americans.

In 1970, a United Native Americans-led contingent of Indians staged a 10-day occupation of Mount Rushmore National Memorial and asserted the right of the Lakota people to reclaim the Black Hills. On August 29, a small group of Lakota gathered at the memorial to share cultural experiences and commemorate the historic event.

Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument and Pu'uhonau o Honaunau National Historical Park both celebrate birthdays in July. These two parks were renamed for cultural-political reasons, underscoring the importance of labels and the need to respect native peoples.

The Oglala Sioux Tribe might regain exclusive control of 133,000 acres of tribal land that was incorporated into Badlands National Park and is being jointly managed with the National Park Service. If the tribe gets its land back it will establish a major precedent.