Leonard Crow Dog
| Leonard Crow Dog | |
|---|---|
| Born | Rosebud Indian Reservation, South Dakota, United States |
| Nationality | American |
| Citizenship | United States |
| Occupation | Author and Activist |
| Known for |
Wounded Knee American Indian Movement |
| Spouse(s) | Francine (divorced) Mary Brave Bird divorced |
Leonard Crow Dog (born 1942) is a Sicangu Lakota medicine man and spiritual leader who became well known during the takeover of the town of Wounded Knee on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota in 1973, known as the Wounded Knee Incident. Through his writings and teachings he has sought to unify Indian people of all nations. As a practitioner of traditional herbal medicine and a leader of Sun Dance ceremonies, he is also dedicated to keeping Lakota traditions alive.
Leonard Crow Dog was born in 1942. Crow Dog is a descendant of a prestigious, traditional family of medicine men and leaders. The name Crow Dog is a poor translation of Kangi Shunka Manitou (Crow Coyote). His great-grandfather, the first to have the family name, had coyote medicine and wolf power.
In 1970 activist Dennis Banks met with Crow Dog, seeking a spiritual leader for the American Indian Movement (AIM), which had started among urban Indians in Minneapolis. Crow Dog had already been trying to unite people on the Rosebud Indian Reservation to organize and work together on issues affecting Indians. AIM organized the large march of the 1972 Trail of Broken Treaties to Washington, D.C. to demand presidential attention to Indian issues. They campaigned on behalf of Indian veterans who were not getting the services they needed. Crow Dog also led protests in Rapid City and the town of Custer, South Dakota to demand justice for hate crimes against the Lakota.
The atmosphere on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, which borders Rosebud, became increasingly tense. Tribal chairman Dick Wilson, believed by opponents to have been fraudulently elected, had accrued much power. He created a personal police unit, known as the Guardians of the Oglala Nation (GOONs), which was used to suppress political opposition. Residents of Pine Ridge who were tired of corruption in tribal government and mistreatment by whites gathered to protest. In 1973 the Oglala Lakota of Pine Ridge took over the village of Wounded Knee to demand justice from the federal government and an end to Wilson's tenure.
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