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00:00:00Let's all pray. We came this far. Some beautiful people and they prayed. So let's all pray
00:00:25together as a family.
00:00:51These writers they come from all over
00:00:53Canada, Montana, Iowa, South Dakota, North Dakota, Minnesota. There's even a guy here
00:00:59from Austria. It's from all over the world. These writers come. And that's the point.
00:01:06That's what we're trying to do here is we're trying to reconcile, unite, make peace with
00:01:11everyone. Because that's what it means to be Dakota. To be Dakota means to walk in peace
00:01:19and harmony with every living thing. That is our way. This ride came through a vision
00:01:28of a man by the name of Jim Miller. And in that vision, he saw writers going east. We're
00:01:34going home. That's what we're doing. We're going home.
00:01:38In 2005, when I received this dream, as any recovered alcoholic, I made believe that I didn't get it.
00:01:51I tried to put it out of my mind, but it's one of them dreams that bothers you night and day.
00:02:38I don't know what to do. I don't know what to do.
00:02:46I don't know what to do. I don't know what to do.
00:02:58St. Paul Pioneer Press, 1863.
00:03:02Good news for Indian hunters. The Indian hunting trade, if the game be at all plenty, is likely
00:03:08to prove a profitable investment during the present fall and winter for our hunters and
00:03:13scouts in the big woods. Having increased the bounty for each top knot of a bloody heathen
00:03:18to $200, there is likely to be considerable competition in the trade, and the best shots
00:03:24will carry off the most prizes.
00:03:32Christmas is coming.
00:03:40I wish you all a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.
00:03:49May God bless you all.
00:04:02May God bless you all.
00:04:08With settlers encroaching on us, they push us onto a little bitty strip of land along
00:04:13the river. All of our people were put there and were not allowed to leave or hunt.
00:04:18The Indians could not leave the reservation. If they left without permission, they would
00:04:28be considered hostile and could be shot on sight.
00:04:34They were supposed to be given rations, given the treaty, but people get greedy. That's
00:04:39how they call them, washichu. They started skimming off the rations and pretty soon they
00:04:44were starving them. When they were starving them, that's when this trader said, well,
00:04:48let them eat grass. And so they revolted. And the fight occurred and many were killed.
00:04:55It was a very short war. It only lasted a few months. When it was over, President Abraham
00:05:03Lincoln hung 38 of our leaders at one time, one pull of the lever, which is today the
00:05:11largest mass execution the government has ever carried out.
00:05:25My great-great-grandfather's waxwolf owl tail was hung that day. Those of us that are
00:05:38on this ride descend from them 38 that were hanged.
00:05:54My great-great-grandfather's waxwolf owl tail was hung that day.
00:05:58We'll never be able to feel what he felt, but we understand he was a spiritual man and
00:06:27he cared a lot about his people. And I think if he was alive, he would have did the same
00:06:32thing. To remember, he would have wanted to acknowledge the ancestors in a spiritual way.
00:06:39And when I heard about this dream, Uncle Sheldon Wolfchild, he told me this dream that Jim
00:06:46had and I wanted to be a part of it. There's something about that ride that pulls you to
00:06:51it. You want to get on a horse and help out. You feel pain in your ribs, your back, your
00:06:57legs. You get cold. We've been through blizzards. A lot of times, if you don't own a horse,
00:07:03you end up on the horse that nobody wants to ride, so that's a sacrifice in itself.
00:07:21I just want to tell everybody here that I love you very much. We don't have to blame
00:07:36the Washichos anymore. We're doing it to ourselves. We're selling drugs. We're killing our own
00:07:46people. And that's what this ride's about. It's healing.
00:08:16We were exiled from Minnesota by an order of the government which stated to annihilate
00:08:46the Indian race or forever push us from the borders of Minnesota. And that's what happened.
00:08:52Thousands and thousands of our people were slaughtered, froze to death, starved to death.
00:08:57Disease took a lot of our people also. A lot of them were marched on foot. Some were brought
00:09:04on cattle trains. Got down to St. Louis, they put us on riverboats and they were brought
00:09:11up the river to where we presently are now at Crow Creek, which was at that time a prisoner
00:09:16of war camp. From there, our people scattered to the four directions.
00:09:23Some of them, you know, would jump off their boats and just drown themselves and they couldn't
00:09:29deal with the hardships. And so it was a horrible thing. They thought it was the end of the
00:09:34world coming here. They had no more hope. And so for us, this journey back, this ride
00:09:40back is taking their spirits back, taking it home to the homeland.
00:09:46We're going to show up in Mankato at the hanging site on December 26th at 10 a.m., which is
00:09:51the anniversary of them 38 that were hanged.
00:09:57When you have dreams, you know when they come from the creator. You just know it.
00:10:10And I always know when it's a significant dream because he says, I've got to tell you
00:10:14this, you know. And so he gets up and he says, I got to tell you this. And I don't know what
00:10:19it means, but and he started telling, telling me he was being directed to make these offerings
00:10:28around the horse. The horse would carry these offerings and that these offerings were for
00:10:36all of the men that were hung in Mankato.
00:10:41Didn't know about Mankato till I had this dream in 2005.
00:10:48In his dream, he's seen all these, the 38 basically being hung at the same time and
00:10:54they were all reaching out, holding each other's arms.
00:10:58Our ancestry starts over there in Mankato. So keep that in your hearts. Keep that in
00:11:17your minds as we travel.
00:11:23So I love you guys very much. I'm a real easy man to talk to. I'm kind of a quiet guy. I
00:11:33pretty much keep to myself. But any atrocity that happened to you, any of you, it happened
00:11:42to me. I was sexually abused, physically abused, spiritually abused, emotionally abused. I
00:11:52have blood on my hands. I'm a Vietnam veteran. I spent time in Leavenworth. So I've been,
00:12:03I've been through the course. Any of you need to talk to me, call me a sign. We're all equal
00:12:12in this room. Nobody's higher or better than anybody. We're all equal. So let's have a real
00:12:23beautiful ride. We got a long haul ahead of us. I never did this before. I don't know what I
00:12:31like to expect in the next 16 days. But you do. You're my family.
00:12:49This horse has the six directions that we use in our ceremonies. The two front legs represent the
00:12:55west and the north. The two back legs represent the east and the south. The head points up. The
00:13:01ears point up. Represents Wakatake. Up above, the tail points downwards towards Mother Earth.
00:13:10When you put those six directions together, it creates a sacred center to bring Wowakan in. It's
00:13:18a sacredness that you can only have with these six directions. And you can pray while you're on
00:13:23your horse. You can think about a lot of things. Some people can remember things that ancestors
00:13:29went through. It's the horse leading the way because of its healing power.
00:13:53It feels good to walk in their steps and be on the land where they were. It's a completely
00:14:14different energy around here. I feel it. I feel like a different person now that I came here.
00:14:23Today, we're riding because of a healing that we need to continue.
00:14:38The reservation where I'm from is the poorest county in the United States with an average household
00:14:44income of $5,000 per year. We also have one of the highest suicide rates in the world. There is
00:14:52something that we suffer from.
00:15:00So basically, I'm riding for my family because they need help. I already lost my oldest brother.
00:15:12He passed away four years ago. And two of my other brothers are sitting in jail. My family is
00:15:20slowly falling apart and this is why I'm doing this for them. And now my little brother, he's getting
00:15:28sent away. I wanted to go see him before he gets sent away next year. But I came here and I don't
00:15:42regret coming here. So all I can say is I'm honored to be on this ride. And I thank you for listening to me.
00:16:04It's just not for our Dakota people, but everybody involved. So if you have horses or you want to be a
00:16:09part of the ride, I mean, come join us. This is our family and we want you guys to be a part of it. So thank you.
00:16:20I didn't know Mankato, like 38 Native Americans were hung here. I had no idea about that. I'm not Native American,
00:16:27but my mom's like Native Canadian and up there. So just having a little bit of that in me and hearing this,
00:16:35really means a lot. So, thank you.
00:16:42It was pretty good talking to them, letting them know our side of the story. And not what just came out of some book
00:16:49that some dude wrote. Coming from the real thing and from the people that are experiencing it. Yeah, it was pretty good.
00:17:00It was a pretty good ride.
00:17:04That's probably the burnt burger and the doughy pizza.
00:17:08No, that's just a joke.
00:17:11And I really don't associate with Caucasian people. I don't know why, it's just, I don't know, I never really.
00:17:19I used to, like when I was little, I had different races of friends when I was little.
00:17:24Like, we might as well just put it on the table, too, because it's the truth and it's the only way that we're going to be able to come together.
00:17:32My people and me, and we've talked about this, there's a lot of racism.
00:17:37And I'm willing to say, yeah, I have some racist moments where I think, oh, okay, they just did that because they're a white guy.
00:17:45Or they're not going to get it because they're white. They're just not.
00:17:49I was feeling like I didn't want to be a part of this anymore.
00:17:53Because I was feeling like everybody was talking to me as, like, Dakota Sarah.
00:17:58Like, oh, well, like, you know, like, you're Dakota first.
00:18:01So I'm going to ask everything, all my questions based on your race.
00:18:07You have to understand there's a certain amount of curiosity coming into a situation.
00:18:11I mean, if someone from Africa came to me, they would have a million questions, I'm sure, about Adam the white guy, the Italian kid from Long Island.
00:18:20So the fact that the questions are getting directed at me makes me feel like, oh, Adam was the only one who was asking questions, the only one who didn't come from the heart.
00:19:20It's going to be warm here in the next couple of days. It's going to be real cold.
00:19:25Real cold.
00:19:28The forecast this morning said Saturday, Sunday, Monday, blizzard warnings.
00:19:39Not much to say.
00:19:43I think some of the things that they're doing like this ride are important for their heritage.
00:19:50I think all people should be proud of who they are and their ancestry and their heritage.
00:19:56I'm proud I'm Norwegian.
00:19:59Golden, golden rims.
00:20:03I got pinched out here.
00:20:06Does she know the price in there? How much a tire was?
00:20:10Just, hey, just don't worry about it.
00:20:13Oh, come on now. I got to give you something.
00:20:17Don't worry about it.
00:20:18You sure?
00:20:19Yeah.
00:20:20Appreciate it. I really appreciate it.
00:20:22Yeah.
00:20:23I wouldn't be so generous, but I just watched that movie Pay It Forward, so.
00:20:27Oh.
00:20:32I wish more of this country was that way.
00:20:34Yeah.
00:20:35Needs to go back to that.
00:20:36Yeah.
00:20:37Yeah, definitely.
00:20:39We've got too many people that are worried about the dollar instead of helping the human being.
00:20:44Exactly. Exactly.
00:20:46I'm getting back in there. I better go.
00:20:48Yeah.
00:20:49I'll just fill that up and I'll come back out and shut that water off.
00:20:53Okay.
00:21:09Okay.
00:21:35Extreme conditions for much of the West
00:21:38as we go through the next several days.
00:21:39Let's get into this bitterly cold Arctic air.
00:21:41Don't forget there'll be a wind chill factor up and through here.
00:21:44I'm running behind you.
00:21:58Some people have loaded their horses here already.
00:22:00Yeah.
00:22:01This isn't where the horses are supposed to be today.
00:22:03Yeah.
00:22:04We didn't get permission to do that.
00:22:06Well, they accept us.
00:22:08This Jim.
00:22:10Jim.
00:22:12I think it's his name.
00:22:13Jim.
00:22:14Yeah, he's the county extension agent that I've been talking to.
00:22:17So he's here?
00:22:18He was here.
00:22:19He gave me this key.
00:22:20Okay, that's good enough.
00:22:21To water.
00:22:22Good enough.
00:22:33Go on.
00:22:34Go on.
00:22:36Okay, I'll get some snacks together and stuff.
00:22:38Oh, that would be so awesome.
00:22:40Yeah.
00:22:41Oh, they would love that.
00:22:42Okay, sure.
00:22:44And it made me feel uncomfortable because, like, in the back of my head,
00:22:47I always, you know, look at them.
00:22:49I was like, they're probably uncomfortable with all of us in here.
00:22:52Don't trust us too much or something.
00:22:54You know, I don't know.
00:22:56It's just how I was growing up.
00:22:58How much did you ride today, man?
00:23:00About, I don't know, 30, 40 miles.
00:23:05How are you feeling?
00:23:06Sore.
00:23:08What do you guys think of the horses?
00:23:10They're nice, but they hurt your butts.
00:23:12They hurt your butts.
00:23:14Yeah?
00:23:15Are you recording it?
00:23:17Yeah, man, you're on tape.
00:23:19Hi.
00:23:24Can I ride it?
00:23:27How can you get up there?
00:23:28How can you get up?
00:23:32I sure can't.
00:23:34Sorry.
00:23:35I'm not big enough to.
00:23:54For me, I love each of you.
00:23:56These little guys here, we're doing that for them.
00:24:00Our culture is one of...
00:24:06Oral.
00:24:07Everything's passed down to us.
00:24:11Riding across there today, I was crying coming.
00:24:16I wonder what my relatives endured when they came down on the boat.
00:24:22When we were taken off the boat, our first homeland in 1863,
00:24:26our first home was the Stockade.
00:24:30When Sitting Bull heard about that as a young man,
00:24:33he came on horseback to see how the people were being treated.
00:24:37And they were being treated worse than animals, I said,
00:24:40and that's why he stood his ground like that.
00:24:45These people call me today.
00:24:47There was two ceremonies that were going on back home
00:24:50called the Uipis.
00:24:53They said that crazy horse in Sitting Bull is riding with us.
00:24:59That means a lot to me.
00:25:17I went out with a regular pair of gloves
00:25:19and was out there about 15 minutes,
00:25:21and my hands started to get frostbite.
00:25:24I saw the weather report.
00:25:26It said 45 below, 50 mile-an-hour winds.
00:25:28It said you're taking your life in your own hands if you're on the road.
00:25:33Not everybody who has got extra brains...
00:25:37...wait until noon, 12 o'clock,
00:25:40and then see what the weather looks like there.
00:25:41The last time I walked with people, men and women like this,
00:25:46I was in a Marine Corps.
00:25:49I was in the Marines
00:25:56The last time I walked with people, men and women like this, I was in a Marine Corps.
00:26:03Yesterday, you know that bad blizzard?
00:26:07These riders wanted to go.
00:26:09They saddled up, they warmed their horses up, we couldn't even see 50 yards, cold.
00:26:17And they still wanted to ride to make this trip.
00:26:25That's how important this is to us.
00:26:29So if you don't mind, we're going to just kind of wait this out.
00:26:32Yeah.
00:26:33And then, you know, if it gets really bad, we got that Quonset, you know, we can put
00:26:35the horses in there.
00:26:36There's quite a bit of room in there.
00:26:37Can we take a look?
00:26:38Yeah.
00:26:39Okay.
00:26:40Let's go do that.
00:26:41Okay.
00:26:42So let's get some panels and panel this off, okay?
00:26:43Okay.
00:26:44It's a little bit flawed.
00:26:45Yeah.
00:26:46Yeah.
00:26:47Yeah.
00:26:48Yeah.
00:26:49Yeah.
00:26:50Yeah.
00:26:51Yeah.
00:26:52Yeah.
00:26:53We got the horses in the Quonset, and so I came back home.
00:27:17And then I'd say it was like 4 o'clock or something.
00:27:20Yeah, it was late afternoon.
00:27:22When Jerry called and said, you know, where can we go to buy hay because the horses need
00:27:28hay?
00:27:29You know, I don't know where I'd send you.
00:27:30I know a lot of guys have got hay, but I don't think you can get there.
00:27:33But I said, you know, I don't know, I'll try.
00:27:36When he came back to the door and he was all full of snow, and I said, what happened?
00:27:40He said, we've got to get the tractor going because I'm stuck up here in the ditch.
00:27:45He said, I didn't even make the corner.
00:27:46I thought, oh my God, if it's that bad, why are you even out?
00:27:52She gets me out, and I tell her, you know, you just need to take the tractor, go home.
00:27:56Then I take off west, and it's terrible.
00:28:00You know, again, I can't see anything.
00:28:02There's drifts on the road.
00:28:03And all of a sudden, I'm right in a ditch again.
00:28:06And this is over a mile from home.
00:28:09And he called me, and he said, how are you doing?
00:28:12And I said, not very good right now.
00:28:15I said, I'm in a ditch.
00:28:17He said, what?
00:28:19I said, yep, I ran in a ditch trying to get to town.
00:28:23It's crazy, man.
00:28:24It's psychotic.
00:28:25I never really thought of those people doing something like that, you know?
00:28:31She went out in the tractor and found him somehow in that blizzard.
00:28:37You almost can't top that as far as support or commitment to what we're doing.
00:28:49All the way from Marty, South Dakota.
00:28:55Do we have any Choctaws in the house?
00:28:57Follow me, Mark.
00:28:58Follow me, Ron.
00:28:59Whenever I'm away from you, I always get these lovesick blues.
00:29:06Never ever leave me, but I will not believe.
00:29:12Look at them.
00:29:13They're taking off.
00:29:14Wow.
00:29:15Holy.
00:29:16All right, brothers.
00:29:17Look at them.
00:29:18They're taking off.
00:29:19Wow.
00:29:20Holy.
00:29:21All right, brothers.
00:29:22Look at them.
00:29:23They're taking off.
00:29:24Wow.
00:29:25Holy.
00:29:26All right, brothers.
00:29:27Look at them.
00:29:28They're taking off.
00:29:29Wow.
00:29:30Holy.
00:29:31All right, brothers.
00:29:32Look at them.
00:29:33They're taking off.
00:29:34Wow.
00:29:35Holy.
00:29:36All right, brothers.
00:29:37Look at them.
00:29:38They're taking off.
00:29:39Wow.
00:29:40Holy.
00:29:41All right, brothers.
00:29:47We come with a message of forgiveness and healing, and we all got to share this planet
00:30:00together.
00:30:01Well, that's the purpose of your ride, is to, you know, have some reconciliation.
00:30:06You think that's already happening, maybe, in some ways.
00:30:09Oh, no doubt.
00:30:10I had an outpouring of support and love.
00:30:13Thank you very much.
00:30:14Appreciate it.
00:30:16That was wonderful.
00:30:18We'll get that microphone if you do, and we'll let you.
00:30:19Thanks a lot.
00:30:20That was good.
00:30:21You did a good job.
00:30:23I love you guys, and you guys have a good day.
00:30:24Oh, you as well.
00:30:25We'll be around.
00:30:26We've got lots of good pictures to get here today.
00:30:27Okay.
00:30:29You bet.
00:30:43Have a safe ride.
00:30:44You bet.
00:30:45I will.
00:30:46Yeah.
00:30:47Yeah, this is awesome.
00:30:48To hear someone who's, you know, not angry at all and says, you know, this is about forgiveness.
00:30:54Wow.
00:30:55Not what I expected.
00:30:56There's a lot of racism in this state.
00:30:58There are a lot of people that are against it and kind of don't make any bones about it.
00:31:06It's okay to be who you are.
00:31:09You're native and you should be proud of it no matter what tribe you're from.
00:31:12Get to know your history because we are an awesome people and you guys should be so proud of that.
00:31:27And I was in an eight by five cell and it was hard.
00:31:31It was really hard.
00:31:33I shed some tears in there.
00:31:34They said men don't cry, but we do.
00:31:37It takes a real man to cry.
00:31:40And thank you.
00:31:44The reason why I'm doing this journey is so I can maybe help one of you in this room today.
00:31:50Because our people are lost and it's up to us to keep our language and our culture alive.
00:31:55We have to be the leaders because we're the next generation and it's up to us.
00:32:01If not, our culture is gone.
00:32:02Our language is gone.
00:32:03And the Wakaija, the youth, the next generation, they'll be lost.
00:32:07They'll have nothing to turn to.
00:32:09On November 26th, I celebrated a year of drugs and alcohol.
00:32:13I ain't going to lie, sometimes I feel like using.
00:32:16I get all my old buddies back home and say, oh, come on, have a beer with us.
00:32:21Let's go get high.
00:32:22I got this joint.
00:32:24But I choose to pray and go to sweat lodges.
00:32:29During the summertime, we attend sun dances.
00:32:32It's hard growing up where I'm from.
00:32:34Pine Ridge is a hard place to live.
00:32:36They call it poverty plains, but we choose to live like that.
00:32:40Now, me writing is to hopefully make a change for our youth so that they won't have to grow up in a society that we grew up in today.
00:32:47βͺβͺβͺ
00:33:02I got caught speeding and he left me behind.
00:33:07In Minnesota, they turn the lights on you, so I drove around.
00:33:12Went in the trees and parked.
00:33:19Any suggestions from life here, boss?
00:33:25My main concern is life in Haiti.
00:33:30What's next in Canada?
00:33:36Again, for my family from here, it's good to see everybody in.
00:33:41My main thing was to see you guys laughing, fed, and all that stuff like that.
00:33:48I extend my thanks.
00:33:50You guys are coming over this hill down here, this little town.
00:33:53That was what I got afraid of.
00:33:56Man, these semis on 34, they're going to come flying over in as cold as ice.
00:34:02So I just stayed up there.
00:34:04I see vehicles, try to slow them down.
00:34:14This is a lady right here. This is a Steph.
00:34:17She has been really great in coordinating so much of the food, the help, the whole works.
00:34:25She's been fantastic.
00:34:26I had food coming all morning to my house, so my truck was loaded.
00:34:32This is the world.
00:34:38Yeah, there was not even a question.
00:34:39As soon as we heard about it, we got the email.
00:34:41We responded back right away and said, yeah, count us in.
00:34:43We'll help out.
00:34:45When they marched the 38 to be hung, they marched them to Maniketo.
00:34:49And then after they hung them, they buried them in a mass grave.
00:34:52And the doctors from the local area, they dug up the bodies and used them for science.
00:35:02So when we learn that history, then it's really hard.
00:35:20I own all the land back here.
00:35:22I'm just curious what is going on. I've seen all the trailers here.
00:35:26I grew up in Minnesota, and I had no idea that there had been a hanging of 38 warriors.
00:35:33And then the boarding schools, of course, to try to turn all the Indians into white people.
00:35:40Their spiritual ceremonies were illegal until 1978.
00:35:45Maybe U.S. white America will reach, or maybe is reaching,
00:35:52the point where they can start acknowledging what really happened in this country.
00:35:58They can acknowledge the massive land theft.
00:36:02Three billion acres within the continental United States.
00:36:06Maybe they can acknowledge the broken treaties.
00:36:09Over 400 of them broken and violated by the United States of America
00:36:14and its U.S. Euro-American citizenry.
00:36:17Maybe they can acknowledge the genocide that occurred.
00:36:2216 million Native people within the continental United States, around 1500.
00:36:28And by four centuries later, 1900, the U.S. Bureau of Census said there was 237,000 left in the U.S.
00:36:38What happened?
00:37:08I believe we were leaving more than I had.
00:37:13And there's a reason I'll be, a reason I'll be back.
00:37:24As I walk the hemisphere, I've got my wish to up and disappear.
00:37:33I've been wounded, I've been healed.
00:37:38Now for landing I've been, landing I've been fevered.
00:37:44Sure as I am breathing, sure as I am breathing.
00:37:48It's like my brother and I, we grew up shaking hands with everybody.
00:37:51Whether you've seen them last night or, you know, stick that old black paw out there.
00:37:56Let somebody shake that thing for you, you shake it back.
00:38:01And when you've got love in your heart, they feel that love.
00:38:04It could be the most bitter S.O.B. there, but, you know, he'll cool off and slow down.
00:38:12Like I said, we don't discriminate against anybody on this ride.
00:38:17Anybody's welcome.
00:38:19I was always scared to tell people that I loved them, and I'm not anymore.
00:38:27So, I just want to tell you guys I love you, and thank you for being here.
00:38:33I know it's hard, but let me know if you need anything.
00:38:36I'm more than willing to help.
00:38:38Mdakiasin.
00:38:42There's something in there.
00:38:43No, it's her ankle.
00:38:45That one guy said he saw her step in a crack.
00:38:48Yeah.
00:38:49It's her ankle.
00:38:57Well, she ain't going to make this ride.
00:39:06You may not know it, because I don't tell very many people, but I'm 100% combat-related disabled.
00:39:19100%.
00:39:28Jim knows what I'm talking about.
00:39:44As a Vietnam combat veteran, my PTSD really kicked in today.
00:39:50It's a post-traumatic stress disorder.
00:39:54I'm 100% disabled, and the doctors tell me not to be on a horse.
00:40:04Today, it's really kicking in.
00:40:24I'm glad you guys let me be part of this.
00:40:28Mdakiasin.
00:40:53With that wowa coming inside those six directions,
00:40:56you place a man or a woman on a horse,
00:40:59you give it the seventh direction,
00:41:01which is the chokata, the center of all things.
00:41:05It represents Mdakiasin.
00:41:08Everything is related and balanced,
00:41:11and you put that all together, and you move forward.
00:41:14You're able to create power as you go.
00:41:18So that was their justification for going to war,
00:41:24that it was either to defend themselves rather than starve to death.
00:41:32I learned a lot about the 38 plus 2,
00:41:36because while I was on that ride, I could really look into the past.
00:41:41While you're sitting on that horse, it makes you realize you have a lot of time to think.
00:41:46Then you realize, like, you don't really care about anything anymore,
00:41:51and you're just wasting your time.
00:41:53Your only job is to get up and move forward.
00:41:57And then, like, you realize, like, that's it,
00:42:01this is the end, and you can't do anything.
00:42:04They'll just kill you, and they'll kill you again,
00:42:08and they'll kill you until you die.
00:42:10So I was able to learn a lot about the 37 plus 2,
00:42:13O Lord, have mercy on us.
00:42:17Give us this day our daily bread.
00:42:22And forgive us our trespasses,
00:42:26as we have forgiven those who trespass against us.
00:42:30Give us this day our daily bread.
00:42:33Give us this day our daily bread.
00:42:43They say that the spirits are the ones that lead the people there in front of that staff.
00:42:58They're the ones taking us through this cold weather.
00:43:02These elements, they say these elements are a part of life.
00:43:13We didn't realize how inspirational this was going to be.
00:43:17If they would bless us by coming back again some year, we would really welcome them.
00:43:23We hope it's an annual event, but we hope the weather is a little bit more cooperative.
00:43:43We wanted to put welcome to our farm on it, but we didn't know how to spell it.
00:44:13Or how to say it.
00:44:14So he came up with the word for thank you.
00:44:19We thought we can park all the vehicles.
00:44:20We have lots of land and we have pasture for the horses and a shop to feed everybody.
00:44:25And we just thought it was just a really neat thing you're doing and a good message for the season.
00:44:30And something we wanted our kids to experience with all of you.
00:44:34And we thought it would be more personal here.
00:44:37So I'm going to sing this song on behalf of my relatives here.
00:44:42To honor you today for this grateful thing that you have done for us.
00:44:46Yah, hey, oh, hey, oh, hey, hey.
00:44:50Yah, hey, oh, hey, oh, hey, hey.
00:44:55Yah, hey, oh, hey, oh, hey, hey.
00:44:58Yah, hey, oh, hey, oh, hey, hey.
00:45:02I'm going to go for it.
00:45:32Yah, hey, oh, hey, oh, hey, hey.
00:45:42We couldn't even see.
00:45:43I mean, the cars couldn't even see.
00:45:45The horses were like doing this.
00:45:47The wind's coming from this way and everybody's going this.
00:45:50Julian stops, gets out.
00:45:51We're shutting it down.
00:45:52We're shutting it down.
00:45:53Everybody gets off their horses.
00:45:54There's not room enough in the car.
00:45:55I look over.
00:45:56Gus's truck and trailer is in a ditch.
00:45:59I look over.
00:46:00Like, things going terribly wrong.
00:46:02And it didn't need to happen, man.
00:46:05Like, it just, you have to have a conversation.
00:46:07Talk about it.
00:46:08We have two days of rest, the 21st and the 22nd.
00:46:10Today is the 20th, right?
00:46:12You don't ride today.
00:46:14You wait for the storm to pass, Saturday and Sunday.
00:46:16Like, you know, the weather report said it was going to be horrible.
00:46:19And then you ride on the days of rest.
00:46:21He hit the ditch back there.
00:46:23There's no room for our horses.
00:46:25Yah, you got to make arrangements.
00:46:26You're going to haul horses there.
00:46:28No, you're going to stop it.
00:46:29You got to haul them back.
00:46:31Shit, man.
00:46:33Jesse, what are you going to do?
00:46:35I don't know.
00:46:36I got to have my horse safe.
00:46:38Not out in the middle of the road.
00:46:40Makes complete sense to me.
00:46:42But since I'm not involved in this, I'm not a leader, I can't.
00:46:44You are a leader, Adam.
00:46:46We are all leaders.
00:46:47Yeah, we're all leaders.
00:46:48Come on.
00:46:49That's a great saying, and I'd like to believe that.
00:46:52All we're doing here is a lack of communication.
00:46:56That's all we have.
00:46:58I told you guys when we first started, I'm not only the person that had the dream.
00:47:05So I try to step back, and I try to let these leaders step up.
00:47:11All right.
00:47:18Could have made it easier.
00:47:19He's pretty much taken advantage of it.
00:47:21Yeah, they know they're in the bottom.
00:47:23They've seen some lives, too.
00:47:25Yeah.
00:47:26This girl got kicked.
00:47:28I saw that.
00:47:29She got kicked this morning.
00:47:30Let's see it.
00:47:31A little girl got kicked by Chris' horse.
00:47:35Right in the hand?
00:47:36Yeah, right across the knuckles.
00:47:41Where I come from, everybody's mostly still mad about what happened.
00:47:47And that's probably another reason why I don't really get along with the Caucasian people.
00:47:55It's because of the 38?
00:47:57Yeah.
00:48:11They rose up to defend themselves, starving to death, to protect their land, their way of life, and their people.
00:48:25Was it wrong to defend ourselves?
00:48:28That's the question.
00:48:31Within weeks, 500 whites, settlers, soldiers, and government agents were dead,
00:48:38along with a smaller but unknown number of Indians.
00:48:43There were pretty horrendous deeds done on both parts.
00:48:46I mean, some immigrant from Germany who wasn't privy to the signing of the Traverse to Sioux Treaty
00:48:53was probably pretty shocked to see his wife's womb cut open, a baby take out, and blood all over the place.
00:48:59I mean, that's a terrible thing to do.
00:49:01It's a terrible thing to do.
00:49:03It's a terrible thing to do.
00:49:05It's a terrible thing to do.
00:49:07It's a terrible thing to do.
00:49:09His wife's womb cut open, a baby take out, and brained against a tree,
00:49:13just as later when New Ulm people attacked the Indians and killed a woman's child in front of her.
00:49:18You know, there's no heroes here.
00:49:21It was just an ugly situation.
00:49:25When I think about Abraham Lincoln, that's hard to swallow because he freed the slaves,
00:49:33but yet really succumbed to pressure from the people to hang, you know.
00:49:40There were supposed to be 300, over 300 that were supposed to be executed,
00:49:47but he reduced it to 38, you know.
00:49:52We say this is a spiritual riot.
00:49:55We're going to be the first ones to ask for forgiveness.
00:50:02We want to say our apologies as the natives.
00:50:07We want to step up and say, hey, we apologize.
00:50:12So we're going to be the first ones to forgive what happened when they hung our ancestors in 1862.
00:50:20We're going to be the first ones to forgive.
00:50:33New Ulm
00:50:53You know, I have anger in my heart, too, and I took care of it the best I can.
00:50:57And I feel like I've done pretty good in the last 10 years, moved forward pretty good,
00:51:03and it's time to let those things go and press forward, you know, in a positive way.
00:51:19You know, Poncho and I are the ones who are interacting with the family,
00:51:22talking with Eli, talking with Taylor, the daughter she just Facebooked me,
00:51:25talking with Brady, you know, because if we're not talking with them,
00:51:30everybody else, you know, within my opinion of the native community,
00:51:35is doing their own little thing in the corners.
00:51:38Dave said he's never been into a white person's home, and he's from Sistin, you know?
00:51:43And that's where all those guys are from.
00:51:45So it's probably hard for them.
00:51:48I know it's hard for them, but those people could not have made it easier.
00:51:51And I'm not saying what they were feeling, but this family, like,
00:51:54they had Whoopita for Peace on their shirts with a horse in rainbow letters.
00:52:00It could not have said, like, welcome with their names on the back.
00:52:03I mean, they went to a lot of trouble for this.
00:52:05I don't know if they normally walk around with that or they did it for this ride.
00:52:08But they had, you know, the whole thing going.
00:52:12I feel like we let them down a little bit, actually, as a community.
00:52:21They didn't trust us or thinking we were going to steal something or, you know,
00:52:24something was going to go missing and they were going to blame us.
00:52:28So I didn't really feel comfortable stopping at all those houses.
00:52:32I mean, it's cool that they did that, man.
00:52:34I like that a lot.
00:52:37It's pretty crazy how it all worked out for the horses and for us.
00:52:47What are you doing?
00:52:49Recording.
00:52:51Amber?
00:52:52Are you going to ride, Amber?
00:52:54Are you?
00:52:55Are you excited?
00:52:56Yeah.
00:52:57You're part of this group now, so, like, don't be afraid to tell them how you feel
00:53:01because they don't know that, you know?
00:53:04To, like, do it publicly is a big thing.
00:53:08But now you're part of the group, so.
00:53:10But am I?
00:53:12Do you know what I'm saying?
00:53:13Yeah.
00:53:14I feel like I am, but then it's kind of like, you know, am I?
00:53:33A lot of us are getting sore throats and headaches and stuff,
00:53:38and it's kind of hard to be in this climate if we're not used to it.
00:53:43All the Canadians, they don't care.
00:53:44They go around naked.
00:53:47I seen Carl walking down the creek with just a blanket on this morning.
00:53:55He was going to chop a hole in the ice and take a bath, he said.
00:54:00But I think one of our leaders here made some medicine in that container over there.
00:54:06Feel free to get some, especially now when it's really warm.
00:54:11Us guys take medicine as long as we can take it.
00:54:27I mean, I don't want this ride to end.
00:54:29I want to keep this ride going because this is the only time I ever felt happy.
00:54:36Back home, it's really hard and makes me feel good riding for my people.
00:54:50Our people suffer from something.
00:54:58An elderly woman of full-blood Dakota from where I'm from in Crow Creek,
00:55:04I was with her one time and a lot of bad things were going on.
00:55:09A lot of bad things.
00:55:11And I had asked her, why does this always happen to us?
00:55:14Why do we do these things to each other?
00:55:16Why does it always happen?
00:55:20And she didn't say nothing.
00:55:21She was driving a car for a while.
00:55:26I looked over at her and she was crying.
00:55:29She said in her language, a deep embedded genetic depression.
00:55:39See, our people at one time, the Dakota people or all Native Americans,
00:55:44had a very strong connection with the Creator,
00:55:48a very strong connection with Mother Earth,
00:55:52a very strong connection with nature, the forces of nature,
00:55:55all living things on this planet.
00:55:58And all this was taken from us like that.
00:56:06And we lost this connection with everything that we had.
00:56:10That's where this depression comes from.
00:56:13A lot of our people are severely depressed and they don't even know it.
00:56:17This depression is just now clinically diagnosed as the same thing
00:56:22soldiers suffer from when they return from combat.
00:56:52In 1967, in 1968,
00:57:21I served in a place called Vietnam.
00:57:25A lot of young people don't know where that's at.
00:57:29And at that time, I took 38 lives.
00:57:38Had no connection.
00:57:42Didn't make no connection with Mankato.
00:57:47Didn't know about Mankato until I had this dream in 2005.
00:57:52There was 38 that were hung, and how does that all tie in?
00:58:02I can't say that I know. I mean, I really don't.
00:58:06But he had an experience around the fire,
00:58:12which I'm not going to go into deeply because it's his experience,
00:58:17which clearly showed him some things that he needed to do
00:58:21to release the 38 Vietnamese men that had been killed by him.
00:58:32And all of this was told to him by his mother.
00:58:35His mother passed away when he was 10,
00:58:38but she came out of the fire and told him he needed to do this.
00:58:42I'm kind of an emotional guy.
00:59:08Those coming down the road, my boarding school days kicked in.
00:59:15My days in Vietnam kicked in, riding into the city.
00:59:21So all my abandonment issues, the hurts and the pains that I went through,
00:59:28coming down the highway this morning,
00:59:34I was wondering what our people went through the day before the hanging.
00:59:40What were their thoughts?
00:59:44Their feelings?
00:59:48In the early hours of Friday, the 26th,
00:59:51as the time of the execution approached,
00:59:54some of the Dakota men lay sleeping on the floor.
00:59:58At dawn, many of the condemned men said goodbye to their captors
01:00:02in a display that fascinated the reporters.
01:00:06They shook hands with the officers who came in among them,
01:00:09bidding them goodbye as if they were going on a long and pleasant journey.
01:00:29And they all wanted their medicine men to speak on their behalf.
01:00:33The words are, don't let your heart be sad.
01:00:37We're going to see each other again.
01:00:39And when we see each other again, your heart and my heart's going to be so happy,
01:00:43it's going to cry when we come together again.
01:00:46That's what the song says.
01:00:49Although it's been said many times,
01:00:53many ways, many ways.
01:00:57There's nothing but the truth in the Lord.
01:01:02You're not cheating.
01:01:05It's moreVoice than the truth.
01:01:10Although it's been said many times, many ways, Merry Christmas to you.
01:01:24Merry Christmas, guys.
01:01:29It was the day after Christmas when they hung them.
01:01:32You know, that's terrible.
01:01:34That's something very terrible to do during such a sacred time.
01:01:38You know, and those are things that we're slowly trying to wipe away.
01:01:44And it's working.
01:01:46And so the ceremony continues as we eat tonight, get up in the morning and get our horses,
01:01:55have our ceremonies, and start our final ride to the hanging site.
01:02:02Yeah, go ahead.
01:02:15For this event, for the memory of the 38 Dakota, not only do we have a horse, a ride,
01:02:21we also have a run.
01:02:24Not only are we remembering, we're honoring our ancestors
01:02:27and those that have passed and struggled before us.
01:02:37It means a lot to me.
01:02:39We're kind of chasing through the footsteps of the 38 Dakota plus two that had to go through this,
01:02:46so we're kind of, I don't know how to explain it, but we're kind of going back through that experience again.
01:02:58I've always believed in, you know, that they're watching over us.
01:03:02You know, like, you know, it's not just us out there running.
01:03:05So that's just kind of the way I see it.
01:03:08We know our history and it hurts, but we're no longer in that prison no more.
01:03:13Reconciliation means something to everybody.
01:03:16I think it's a collective.
01:03:18And we actually also had the opportunity to catch the run.
01:03:22We ran for two miles at about 3 a.m.
01:03:25So it's been quite an adventure for the five of us who were there last night.
01:03:29So thank you to the riders.
01:03:31Thank you to the runners.
01:03:52On that fateful day, they were let out of the prison compound.
01:03:58They were shackled and chained together.
01:04:02They had hoods on them.
01:04:05The women began waiting and weeping.
01:04:10One of the prisoners in a loud voice said,
01:04:14Hear me, my people.
01:04:17Today is not a day of defeat.
01:04:22It is a day of victory.
01:04:24For we have made our peace with our Creator
01:04:27and now go to be with Him forever.
01:04:31Remember this day to tell our children, so they can tell their children,
01:04:35that we are people who die an over death.
01:04:40Do not mourn for us.
01:04:42Rejoice with us.
01:04:44It's a good day to die.
01:04:55And then he lifted up his voice and began singing.
01:05:12Amen.
01:05:13Amen.
01:05:42Amen.
01:06:12Amen.
01:06:13Amen.
01:06:14Amen.
01:06:15Amen.
01:06:16Amen.
01:06:17Amen.
01:06:18Amen.
01:06:19Amen.
01:06:20Amen.
01:06:21Amen.
01:06:22Amen.
01:06:23Amen.
01:06:24Amen.
01:06:25Amen.
01:06:26Amen.
01:06:27Amen.
01:06:28Amen.
01:06:29Amen.
01:06:30I just want to tell all of you that I love you.
01:06:34We're doing this for our children, our grandchildren.
01:06:41And I want to thank all of you that helped me fulfill this dream.
01:06:49It's been a blessing for our people.
01:06:54Fifty-three years ago, I entered first grade,
01:06:59and I was taught nothing but misinformation
01:07:03about the people that preceded me on this land.
01:07:06And it wasn't until the 1980s,
01:07:09when I walked into my first powwow at the Land of Memories,
01:07:12when I realized that I didn't know anything except lies,
01:07:17for the most part.
01:07:19And so I started that day to listen.
01:07:22Whereas the Dakota people lived in unity with the land for many years
01:07:26long before the European people came,
01:07:28and whereas the Dakota people have suffered unimaginable hardship
01:07:32over a long period of time as the land and riches they once had
01:07:36were gradually removed from their control,
01:07:39and whereas the Dakota people have many times been forcibly relocated
01:07:43at the whim of the United States government,
01:07:46and whereas one outcome of their trials was the largest mass execution
01:07:50ever recorded in U.S. history, during which 38 Dakota were hanged,
01:07:54and whereas the Dakota people have put forth tremendous effort
01:07:58in an attempt to continue to heal from their suffering over all these years,
01:08:04and whereas the people of this community welcome the Dakota people
01:08:09to be part of our community today and always,
01:08:13and whereas the people of this community recognize the responsibility
01:08:17we must bear in this healing process,
01:08:20and whereas the people of this community wish to be part of the healing process
01:08:25as the wounds begin to close.
01:08:28Now therefore, in recognition of the tremendous contribution
01:08:31made by the Dakota people toward that healing process
01:08:34to our community and communities in the region,
01:08:37I, John D. Brady, Mayor of the City of Mankato, Minnesota,
01:08:39do hereby proclaim December 26, 2008
01:08:42to be Dakota Reconciliation Okikutsu-Ye Day.
01:08:47And in the sense of true reconciliation,
01:08:50I just want to say, welcome back to your home.
01:08:56applause
01:09:09I have just one little thing, and then I'll let you go.
01:09:12Just a little symbolism of that welcoming,
01:09:15I'm going to also offer Jim a key to the city of Mankato.
01:09:19applause
01:09:24It's a key that opens no locks, it only opens hearts.
01:09:27laughter
01:09:32Thank you very much.
01:09:36I thank each and every one of you here in this room.
01:09:40I thank the city of Mankato.
01:09:44I hope this opens a jail cell or two.
01:09:47laughter
01:09:53piano plays softly
01:10:02I'm going to pass this staff on.
01:10:05I have 2 extra feathers for the 2 Dakota
01:10:09that were hung 2 years later,
01:10:12and I want to present them to him also.
01:10:16We are going to keep this going.
01:10:20From here, forever, we're going to keep this ride going.
01:10:28There was a bald eagle just after he started singing.
01:10:32It was soaring just above us there.
01:10:35To see that, to see something like that,
01:10:40would, you know, would make you cry.
01:10:44Make any man cry to see something like that,
01:10:48you know, happening, because this is real.
01:10:52You know, it's not going to end for me,
01:10:55I'm just going to keep that happiness with me.
01:10:58I'm not going to, like, once this ride ends,
01:11:01I ain't going to leave my emotions right there
01:11:04and just go back home to what I was doing.
01:11:07I'm going to take it with me, it's going to come home with me.
01:11:11We've got to strive for that reconciliation.
01:11:14Let's go home and reconcile our families, our differences.
01:11:20Let's go home and hug our children,
01:11:23tell them that we love them.
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