And now:Ish <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> writes: URL provided by Peter..thanks, Ish Indian takes battle to court Means wants to use trial to get land back By Tanya Sierra Del Real Denver Rocky Mountain News Staff Writer http://insidedenver.com/news/0705prot7.shtml PINE RIDGE, S.D. -- It's not over. Russell Means, a leader of the American Indian Movement, and Denver activists want people to know that their battle is not over. Means, who was arrested and charged with failure to obey a police order Saturday by crossing the state line at Whiteclay, Neb., during a peaceful prayer-march, intends to demand a jury trial at his July 27 court appearance. He wants to use his day in court to demand action on the "broken Fort Laramie Treaty of 1868." The Oglala Lakota Indians want to take back a part of northwestern Nebraska that they say is legally part of the Pine Ridge (S.D.) Indian Reservation under terms of the treaty. "AIM's strategy is to get the Indians' day in court," Means said. "In most cases, I get arrested so I can bring the issue into court. "I think we're going to accomplish some ultimate goals by being arrested," he said. Means will soon reach one of his goals with the opening of a school for kindergarten through third grade in Porcupine, S.D., where he lives. "It will be total immersion in the Lakota sciences and culture," he said. The school will model the successful Maori Total Immersion schools in New Zealand, he said, which were started about 15 years ago by the indigenous people of the region. Another mission that Means is working on is to establish a citizens grand jury. "This fall, we're going to implement the Red Ribbon all-Indian jury," he said. He sees it as a step toward reinstituting "the original concept of the American Constitution." Within the next few days, Means said, he also will begin a weekly radio show on Indian-owned KILI radio in South Dakota called Russell Means Commentary, in which he'll discuss world issues. In Whiteclay, business owners say they face uncertainty after a weekend of Indian protests in the town. 'It's going to be a long uphill battle for us," said Stuart Kozal, manager of the Jumping Eagle Inn liquor store. "We're catching a lot of heat, but I saw that coming." The town's four liquor stores, which sell $3 million in beer annually, have been the focal point of much adversity on the Pine Ridge reservation. Business owners have a meeting scheduled with Nebraska Gov. Mike Johanns on Tuesday to discuss problems and possible solutions. Although Kozal said he lost business for the two days his store had to remain closed, he said he agreed with Nebraska state troopers who evacuated the town and closed its stores in preparation for the prayer-march Saturday. The troopers wanted to be prepared for the worst when they lined the Nebraska-South Dakota border in riot gear. Last week, a similar prayer march turned violent and some stores were looted. "I didn't know how bad things would get," Kozal said. Saturday's rally and prayer-march were organized to call attention to recent unsolved murders and the high volume of beer sales to Pine Ridge Indians. The marchers also demanded the return of land they say originally belonged to their reservation. "We came to support the Lakota people in their quest for justice with the two murders," said Glenn Morris, a University of Colorado at Denver political science professor. Morris is a Shawnee and member of the Colorado chapter of AIM. Reprinted under the fair use http://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.html doctrine of international copyright law. &&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&& Tsonkwadiyonrat (We are ONE Spirit) Unenh onhwa' Awayaton http://www.tdi.net/ishgooda/ &&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&
