It has been said that history is written by the victorious. That may be true, only if the battle is over. In the case of the Ghost Dance, I think it is just beginning. because it is not about the dance at all, but a belief. A belief that truth and honor will win out over greed, lies and deceit. It is about people trying to shun and refuse the Manifest Destiny of the Government. If it is true the "The meek shall inherit the earth", then oppressed tribes in our continent will prevail. If you're thinking of just the tribes, and cultures in our country, guess again. Canadian tribes are oppressed as well. That's may not be news to you. But what if you knew that many of the supporters of the Ghost Dance can not travel from Canada to here, nor can many of the supporters of the dance here cannot travel to Canada. Why is that? 


     Well, it is simple. After the massacre on December 29th, 1890 at wounded knee, the Ghost Dance was Outlawed. Any attempt to revitalize the dance was met with extreme prejudice and even violence. It took until 1970 when Leonard Crow Dog revived the practice as part of the Red Power movement. It was watched under the watchful eyes of the government, and may have even led to the Incident at Wounded in 1973. So the Government once again clamped down on Wounded Knee, and it quite obvious if you spend anytime there. But let's not get ahead ourselves.... Yet. The Ghost Dance of December 1890 had so many undercurrents. The Murder of Sitting Bull 2 weeks earlier, plus the sting of Little Big Horn Still fresh in many of the troops mind. The need to end this possible uprising in any manner possible. Now add in a severe winter blizzard in full swing. And the man in charge general Nelson Miles, an aggressive Indian hating soldier at the helm. His fear was evident before the massacre. His anger over the loss at Little Bighorn evident in his actions at the Ft Laramie Treaty of 1868, forcing the agreement between the United States and the Oglala, Miniconjou, and Brulé bands of Lakota people, Yanktonai Dakota and Arapaho Nation, following the failure of the first Fort Laramie treaty, signed in 1851. The treaty failed because of the discovery of gold in the Black hills, and a bankrupt nation, wanted that gold at any cost. There were several battles, and many of them were won by the local tribes, and the ones the lost, created so many casualties on the white man side, the victories were hollow. General Miles was determined to win at any cost. He proved that nine years later at Wounded Knee.

Gen. Miles

The Indians have become so bold in their frenzy that they declare that if the soldiers attempt to take away their chiefs, as has been proposed, they will cut the soldiers’ ears off and kill them. Every officer on the ground views the situation as very critical. They know that from 6,000 to 8,000 Indians are likely to swoop down upon them at any moment. ‘If this happens,’ one officer said, ‘nothing but a miracle could save us from Custer’s fate. I hope to God that reinforcements will come before the red devils make their break.

It is obvious that plans were already in place to end this movement at any cost. Unfortunately, it was at the cost of unarmed lives. They even made sure to claim a scapegoat to the fight. A medicine man no less. The left the bodies in the snow for 2-3 days, trying to figure out what or how to best dispose of the bodies. They settled on the mass grave, located to the north of the massacre, the same place they had placed the 4 Hotchkiss guns. The very same guns they used to kill. 

    Mass graves are nothing new to he United States, In fact in 2018, Sugar-Land Texas discovered a mass grave that may have as many as 15,000 bodies of slaves. The disposition of the site is still unclear, as they may be bodies under homes, and various locations around the city. USA today did a great story on it here. 

    As we travel the history of the Ghost Dance together, you will discover that history does indeed repeat itself in many ways. From the actual steps governments take to conquer and vanquish what the believe to be threats, to the media's response to the acts as well. If it doesn't worry you or scare you, It should. The Indian wars set a precedence of behavior in our country and the worries of the conquering men worried about what to do about the tribes date back to the 1700s. 

    I am by no means an expert on this subject, and learn something new all the time. And as I begin to post more blogs, I will also try and post links, and tell you what books I have read, and how you too can purchase them. I hope you will take the time to not only read the blogs, and the Facebook Page, but leave a response or reply. Your opinion matters! The series will start soon, and we will be going back to August 1680! 210 years before Wounded Knee! The first document sign of revolt, oppression. The lies, deceit, and treachery against the tribes begins.