Tribal Report of the Northern Cheyenne Nation

Bear Butte, S.D.—Plows and tractors have already begun building near Noavose for the construction of a biker bar. The Northern Cheyenne have purchased land near the sacred site and passed resolutions opposed to the construction and to the liquor license.

Tribal Report Staff

When Ma’heo’e created the world, the birds and water beings already existed. It was a small duck that was able to reach the lands below the water world. It was this land that Ma’heo’e created the world with; it was this land that Ma’heo’e created the first human beings. Today Cheyennes are still able to recall this oral tradition and the connection to our homelands. The old people used to tell the younger generations to never forget their physical, mental, and spiritual connection to the land, teaching children that their red skin is the same color as the red earth from which they live upon; that every so often, their bare feet should touch the brown earth to remind them of where they come from; and that they should always respect sacred places.

Land has always been a significant and vital part of the Cheyenne way of life and worldview. The land is at the core of all our ceremonies and rituals our ancestors passed down for centuries. The Cheyenne connection to the land is more than physical and mental; it is spiritual because it is the reference point of our creation as humans and the origin of our world-universe. Noavose embodies all these concepts and further validates and distinguishes the Cheyenne oral history and traditional culture from all other Indigenous peoples. The story behind Noavose and the prophet Motse’eove is powerful and sets precedence for the Cheyenne relationship with the holy mountain and the land in general. By given reverence and ministering to Noavose, Cheyenne people have maintained their role as caretakers and descendants of the holy mountain.

The whole reason for the establishment of South Dakota’s Bear Butte State Park was based on its historic and cultural significance to various Tribes of the region. The idea of Noavose receiving State recognition and protection was because of the American Indian connection to the mountain, not because of non-Indian economic exploitative goals. One way for tribes like the Northern Cheyenne to protect their sacred sites is to purchase these lands, since most non-Indians may not fully understand what sacred sites are.

Northern Cheyenne Councilwoman Alberta Fisher initiated the negotiations for the purchase of land at Bear Butte when she participated in numerous grassroots meetings about the sacred mountain. Along with TERO Director Eugene Limpy, Councilwoman Fisher presented this opportunity to the Land Authority, which is a standing committee of Tribal Council members who oversee all land issues and who have the authority to purchase land on behalf of the Tribe. Land Authority Chairman L. Jace Killsback proceeded with negotiations with Sleeping Bear Campground L.L.C. and secured first right or refusal from the owners by entering into an agreement in early December 2005. Following some major budget revisions and special financial draw downs, the Land Authority approved the purchase in March and closed the sale.

On March 23rd, 2006 the Northern Cheyenne Tribe purchased a 36-acre tract of land located at the base of Bear Butte State Park in Sturgis, South Dakota to combat the unrestrained development and construction of Sturgis Rally biker-bar-concert venues. These venues are encroaching on the Tribe’s most historically and culturally important landmark. Noavose is a sacred site and has a special landscape that the Cheyenne respect, but there have been a non-Indian interest in exploiting the mountain. In earlier years, non-Indians attempted to build a shooting range near the holy mountain.

Northern Cheyenne Tribal President Little Coyote and other Tribal Council members signed the final closing statements at the Meade County Title Company obtaining the title and ownership from Sleeping Bear Campground & Retreat L.L.C. The Northern Cheyenne Tribe now owns more than 700 acres around the base, the only Tribe other than the Southern Cheyenne and Arapahoe, to have trust land near the mountain. Our Southern Cheyenne and Arapahoe relatives from Oklahoma have 120 acres of land held in trust which was enacted by congress.

The Tribe’s acquisition of the property was greatly influenced by the continuing encroachment of biker rally venues such as bars, concerts areas, and campgrounds being constructed near and around the traditionally historic “holy mountain” of the Northern Cheyenne people. Noavose is more than a sacred landscape to the people because it is the place of origin of the Cheyenne way of life, spirituality, and worldview. Tribal members still make annual pilgrimages and visits to perform healing and purification ceremonies, to teach the youth about the mountain’s importance and its history, and also to manage and oversee other tracts of tribally-owned land.

Despite the strong presence of the Cheyenne and of other American Indian Nations, the local non-Indian community and political leadership of Sturgis, South Dakota has not considered the Indian interests, nor has there been any attempt at establishing good relations. On April 4th, 2006 Northern Cheyenne Chief Leonard Elkshoulder, gave testimony on ceremonial issues of the importance of Noavose in a Meade County Commissioners meeting. L. Jace Killsback also testified on behalf of the Northern Cheyenne as a major landowner in Meade County. The meeting was held to approve or disapprove the liquor license for Jay Allen’s biker bar. The Commission took only minutes to render their decision, approving Jay Allen’s liquor license and right to sell alcohol only a few hundred yards from Noavose.

More recently, the Northern Cheyenne Tribal Government passed a resolution opposing Arizona entrepreneur Jay Allen’s application for a liquor license permit from the Meade County Commissioners for his development of the area’s largest biker bar-campground and amphitheater. The Tribe sees this purchase as a more practical step to protect Noavose for future generations and for the world community. The plans for the property are will be to keep it pristine in order to keep the culture and identity of the Northern Cheyenne Tribe alive.

Although the N.C. Tribe owns a house near the mountain, it is under a lease agreement and is not a Cheyenne home or sanctuary. The Northern Cheyenne Land Committee and the Northern Cheyenne TERO Office are currently constructing minor camping facilities on the land including: a shade, picnic tables, camping sites, outhouses, grills, roads, and fences. These are being made specifically for those Cheyennes who continue to make pilgrimages and participate in ceremonies at Noavose.

We would like to thank the Bear Butte Intertribal Alliance, Defenders of Bear Butte, and the Bear Butte State Park Staff for their support and efforts. The Northern Cheyenne Tribe is asking for other Tribal Nations support in protection Bear Butte, but more importantly is requesting your prayers.

Tribal Report of the Northern Cheyenne Nation (June 2006 Vol. I No. 6), page 1.

More Than a Struggle: A Righteous Cause Preserving The Sanctity of Noavose

Noavose is visited annually by Northern Cheyennes each year after the Arrow Worship Ceremony. Northern Cheyennes are the only Indian Nation who trace one of their most influential prophets to the Sacred Mountain. Each year youth groups from the Northern Cheyenne reservation visit the site for educational, spiritual, and ceremonial purposes. Pictured is one of seven groups from the 2005 Cheyenne Epic Camp: team leader Drew Elkshoulder.

Eugene D. Little Coyote [Northern Cheyenne Tribal President]

Let us go back to a beginning, before the era when our fearsome warriors were master horseman of the Great Plains, to a time when the proto-Cheyenne were suffering from hunger and constant danger. It was the time of the emergence of Sweet Root Standing (Sweet Medicine) and his Divine enlightenment, receiving a covenant of four Sacred Arrows, the institutions of the Council of Forty-Four Chiefs, the original Military Societies, and a code of life. (Note: I’ve been allowed to speak and write of these things by my ceremonial instructors on the condition that it’s in generalities.)

And I ask where, where did he receive these divine gifts of life, power and guidance? Sweet Medicine received these great things of government, defense, and laws at the Sacred Mountain Noavose. And so, on special occasions, I’ve said what we Cheyenne know to be true: Noavose is the recognized birthplace of our Tribal Nation. We revere it, we honor it, we still pray there. Our past helps define the present, and in the subject of Noavose, our Sacred Mountain is an integral and perpetual part of what defines us as Cheyenne.

But now, in the present, a terrible threat to the sanctity of our Sacred Mountain has arisen: A developer is in the construction stages of building a newer, bigger biker bar very near to Noavose. The Tribe has responded to this threat to our Sacred Mountain through official action by 1.) Formally opposing the liquor license for this bar via Resolution No. NCT-46 (06) sponsored by Tribal Councilman L. Jace Killsback, and by 2.) Adopting a resolution to take every measure necessary to preserve the sanctity from encroaching commercial development and to form (or renew) the alliances with the Arapaho and Lakota (as well as the Cheyenne & Arapaho of Oklahoma) through Tribal Council Resolution No. NCT-238 (05) sponsored by myself.

This is a very important cause. It’s so important and sacred that it deals with the very essence of the inherent Cheyenne cultural identity. In fact, amidst all

of the rampant criticism claiming the Tribal Government is split or divided, I’d like to share Councilman Killsback’s remarks responding to the gossip/criticism during the War On Meth Rally: “No, we are not divided, the government is still working; we may not all vote the same way every time but we’re holding meetings, we have quorums, we are approving budgets and business is being conducted. And there are things we all can agree on, like protecting Bear Butte.”

While the tribal council opinion and voting varies from member to member, protecting Noavose is the most non-partisan, positive, official Tribal initiative we have ongoing. Although it’s a fight, it’s a good fight for the right reasons. Again, it’s a cause. In fact, the fight to protect Bear Butte has rapidly become a movement for a lot of tribes and even non-Indians who support the American Indian cause. There are even a number of events contributing to this cause; the Lakota are calling for a large assembly of tribes at Noavose, our own tribal members have recently conducted a sacred run to the Sacred Mountain and the NCT Land Authority has made a major land purchase of prime property at the north base of Noavose for our tribal members to utilize in their pilgrimages to pray there.

As I reflect upon our proud Tribal Nation, our history, and our very identity I realize that Nations and their people are largely defined by their conflicts – for fighting for what they believe in. America itself is still defined by the Revolutionary War and their cause for freedom. So too is the Cheyenne defined by our wars: The so-called Plains Indian Wars was our cause to maintain our own freedoms, lands and way of life. Today our new battles are for sovereignty and economic independence, for language and cultural preservation, for the equitable redistribution of the wealth St. Labre raises in our name, we fight for environmental quality, and we fight to preserve the sanctity of our Sacred Mountain Noavose. And so I say this: Long live the Cheyenne People and our unwavering spirit!

Tribal Report of the Northern Cheyenne Nation (June 2006 Vol. I No. 6), page 1.

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