Land return

Black Hills (He Sapa) claim and LANDBACK Mount Rushmore campaign

Not yet reviewed by this nation. What follows comes from public records and research. It does not speak for the nation.

The Supreme Court held in 1980 that compensation was owed for the Black Hills; the Sioux have declined the money and want the land.

Nation: Oceti Sakowin (Sioux Nation)
Where: Black Hills, South Dakota
Began: 1877
Status: Claim ongoing

Where the land is

Black Hills, South Dakota (point at Hill City). Only the general area is shown.

The map marks only the general area, so this page does not say which recorded cession the land falls in.

Location from law.cornell.edu.

What happened

The Black Hills of South Dakota were part of the Great Sioux Reservation set up by the Fort Laramie Treaty of April 29, 1868, in which the United States pledged the area would be set apart for the absolute and undisturbed use and occupation of the Sioux. In the Act of 1877, Congress took the Black Hills.

The Sioux Nation brought the claim for generations. In United States v. Sioux Nation of Indians (decided June 30, 1980), the Supreme Court held that the 1877 Act effected a taking of tribal property, which implied an obligation to make just compensation, including interest. The lower court had set the principal at $17.1 million, the 1877 fair market value, with 5 percent annual interest from 1877.

The money has not been collected. PBS NewsHour reported in 2011 that $102 million was set aside in 1980 and that the trust's value had grown well beyond $1 billion, but that the Sioux had never collected. It reported the tribes say the land was never for sale and that accepting the funds would be tantamount to a sales transaction. In PBS's words, former special trustee Ross Swimmer said: "They didn't want the money. They wanted the Black Hills." PBS also quotes a Sioux leader saying some tribal members want to accept the money.

NDN Collective, which describes LANDBACK as an Indigenous-led organizing and narrative framework, says its LANDBACK Campaign aims to connect, coordinate, resource and amplify communities fighting for land return.

Good to know. Figures for the 1980 award differ: $102 million set aside in 1980 (PBS) or about $105 million. Sioux opinion on accepting the money is not uniform.

Summarized with AI assistance from 5 sources and checked against their words; not yet reviewed by historians or by the nations. Report an error

What the sources say, and how this was checked

Supported by the sources below; some details rest on one source.

effected a taking of tribal property which had been set aside by the Fort Laramie TreatyUnited States v. Sioux Nation of Indians, 448 U.S. 371 (1980)
interest on the principal sum of $17.1 million (the fair market value of the Black Hills as of 1877)United States v. Sioux Nation of Indians, 448 U.S. 371 (1980)
The trust's value continues to grow well beyond $1 billion, but the Sioux have never collected.Why the Sioux Are Refusing $1.3 Billion (PBS NewsHour, Aug. 24, 2011)
the tribes say the payment is invalid because the land was never for sale and accepting the funds would be tantamount to a sales transactionWhy the Sioux Are Refusing $1.3 Billion (PBS NewsHour, Aug. 24, 2011)
As NDN Collective , we are stepping into this legacy with the launch of a LANDBACK CampaignAbout (LANDBACK / NDN Collective)

Research notes. The seed record mentions a LANDBACK campaign to close Mount Rushmore and return public lands in the Black Hills; no source read states that, so it is not asserted. Dollar figures differ: PBS gives $102 million set aside in 1980 and over $1 billion later (headline $1.3 billion in 2011); the seed cites an AP figure of about $105 million, which was not found in a source read. PBS reports that Sioux opinion is not uniform on accepting the money; positions come from reporting, not from the nations' own statements. No acreage is stated in the sources read. The Black Hills hold sites sacred to the Sioux; none are located here.

Who is doing the work

This history belongs to living nations. Start with them:

Working with these nations

Rosebud Sioux Tribe (Sicangu Oyate) Nation government Pe' Sla (1,942 acres, Nov 30, 2012)
Indian Land Tenure Foundation (ILTF) Native-led Land recovery and control by tribes and individual Indian landowners Website
Lakota People's Law Project (program of Sacred Defense Fund) Native-led Legal advocacy Give on their site Website
NDN Collective (LANDBACK Campaign) Native-led LANDBACK campaign (launched 2020; Mount Rushmore closure and return of Black Hills public lands), Indigenous… Give on their site Website
Cheyenne River Youth Project (CRYP) Native-led Youth programs Website
Thunder Valley Community Development Corporation (Lakota Land Systems) Native-led Lakota-led regenerative community development on Pine Ridge: Lakota Land Systems Give on their site Website

Land return and Native-led work nearby

Native Governance Center Native-led Strengthening Native nation governance and capacity to exercise sovereignty Give on their site Website
Siċaŋġu Co (Sicangu Community Development Corporation; Wolakota Buffalo Range) Native-led Sicangu Lakota economic engine incl. Wolakota Buffalo Range, food sovereignty initiative, local foods Give on their site Website
Tanka Fund Native-led Returning buffalo to Native American lands, lives and economies via animals, grants and technical assistance to… Give on their site Website