Cheyenne River Youth Project buys land beside Bear Butte

What happened

The Cheyenne River Youth Project (CRYP), a Native American-led nonprofit, announced in an April 11, 2024 statement that it had purchased nearly 40 acres of land in South Dakota's Black Hills, next to a state park. Associated Press coverage says the statement did not say how much the organization paid. The buyer is a nonprofit, not the tribal government.

CRYP's statement, as reported by the AP, said access to the culturally important site beside the park was severed in the late 19th century, when the U.S. government seized the Black Hills and broke up the Great Sioux Reservation into several smaller reservations. It noted that the Supreme Court ruled in 1980 that the U.S. had illegally taken the Black Hills, and that the Lakota have refused to accept the money the court awarded, which the statement put at $105 million, because the Black Hills were never for sale.

CRYP's chief executive, Julie Garreau, told South Dakota Public Broadcasting that the purchase is also practical: reservations lie hours from important places, so access matters for raising healthy young Lakota children. She said the group wants to teach children about traditional foods and medicinal plants the land can offer and to deepen its cultural programming. She added that it is unfair that they had to buy the land, but they did what they had to do. She said a dedication ceremony would be held in private.

Good to know. The buyer is a nonprofit, not a tribal government. Figures for the 1980 Black Hills award differ: about $105 million (AP) or $102 million (PBS).

Summarized with AI assistance from 4 sources and checked against their words; not yet reviewed by historians or by the nations. Report an error