{"id":9978,"date":"2020-05-13T17:34:33","date_gmt":"2020-05-13T22:34:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/unitedresourceconnection.org\/cannon-ball-nd-58528\/checkpoints-on-reservations-point-of-discussion\/"},"modified":"2020-05-13T17:34:37","modified_gmt":"2020-05-13T22:34:37","slug":"checkpoints-on-reservations-point-of-discussion","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/unitedresourceconnection.org\/cannon-ball-nd-58528\/checkpoints-on-reservations-point-of-discussion\/","title":{"rendered":"Checkpoints on reservations point of discussion"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Dewey County Sheriff assisting Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe at\u00a0 checkpoint.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

EAGLE BUTTE \u2014 The Cheyenne River Sioux and Oglala Sioux tribes are refusing to bow to an order South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem sent the two tribes on May 8. The order states the tribes must remove coronavirus traffic checkpoints from reservation borders or face legal action.
\nThe top elected leaders of the state\u2019s two largest tribes argue that Constitutional and treaty law establish their tribal sovereignty and authority to protect their people operating the roadside stops within their boundaries.
\n\u201cI regretfully decline your request,\u201d Cheyenne River Sioux Chair Harold Frazier said in a letter to Noem on May 8. \u201cI stand with our Councilman Ed Widow that the purpose of our actions is to, \u2018save lives rather than save face.\u2019\u201d He also added, \u201cWe will not apologize for being an island of safety in a sea of uncertainty and death.\u201d
\nOne reason the checkpoints are necessary is South Dakota\u2019s slow and ineffective response to the Covid-19 pandemic, according to Oglala Sioux Tribal President Julian Bear Runner.<\/p>\n

South Dakota is one of five states that hasn\u2019t issued a shelter-in-place mandate, despite a steady increase in confirmed cases of Covid-19.
\n\u201cDue to this lack of judgement and planning of preventative measures \u2026 , the Oglala Sioux Tribe has adopted reasonable and necessary measures to protect the health and safety of our tribal members and other residents of the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation,\u201d Bear Runner wrote to Noem on May 8.
\nGovernor Noem and Bureau of Indian Affairs officials have asserted that the checkpoints must be removed because they are in violation of a memorandum sent by the BIA. The memo states that tribes must consult with state officials before \u201cclosing or restricting travel on State or U.S. highways.\u201d
\nBoth Chairman Frazier and President Bear Runner have said they have not closed any roads and are using the checkpoints to mitigate and track the spread of the coronavirus.
\n\u201cNon-residents whose travel is considered non-essential are advised to pass through the Reservation without stopping,\u201d wrote President Bear Runner to Noem. \u201cIt is not our intent to deny them passage through the Reservation, including on U.S. Highway 18 and State Highways 44, 391, and 407.\u201d
\nAt the heart of the debate is the scope of tribal authority on state and federal highways that run through tribal territory. Chairman Frazier and President Bear Runner argue that the law supports the tribes.
\nIn his May 8 response to the governor, Frazier cited Article 16 of the 1868 Ft. Laramie Treaty which \u201cstipulates and agrees that no white person or persons shall be permitted to settle upon or occupy any portion of the same; or without the consent of the Indians first had and obtained, to pass through the same.\u201d He added that while collaboration is crucial during this time, being forced to remove the checkpoints restricts the fundamental right of the tribe \u2014 a sovereign nation \u2014 to protect their people.
\n\u201cI absolutely agree that we need to work together during this time of crisis, however you continuing to interfere in our efforts to do what science and facts dictate seriously undermine our ability to protect everyone on the reservation,\u201d wrote Frazier.
\nThe Oglala Sioux Tribe also cited the Ft. Laramie Treaty in their response letter:
\n\u201cThe 1868 Treaty recognizes that our Reservation was \u2018set apart for the absolute and undisturbed use and occupation\u2019 of our Indian people,\u2019\u201d wrote President Bear Runner. He added that, according to the treaty, outsiders would not \u201cever be permitted to pass over, settle upon, or reside in [our territory].\u201d
\nHe also referenced South Dakota\u2019s state constitution, which contains the agreement \u201cwe, the people inhabiting the state of South Dakota, do agree and declare that we forever disclaim all right and title\u2026 to all lands\u2026 owned or held by any Indian or Indian tribes\u2026\u201d S.D. Const., Art. XXII.
\nTribal leadership are not the only elected officials questioning the legality of the governor\u2019s checkpoint removal order.
\nOn May 9, 17 South Dakota congressmen sent a bipartisan letter to Governor Noem\u2019s office arguing that the order violates numerous treaties and court rulings.
\n\u201cYour statement that Tribal governments do not possess the ability to establish checkpoints within the boundaries of their homelands is not accurate,\u201d the letter states. \u201cThese jurisdictional powers were enshrined in both the 1851 and 1868 Ft. Laramie Treaties and have been reaffirmed numerous times through case law, Congress, and Supreme Court Rulings.\u201d
\nThen congressmen then cited a 1990 ruling by the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals, Rosebud Sioux Tribe v. State od S.D., which states, \u201cAbsent tribal consent, we hold the State of South Dakota has no jurisdiction over the highways running through Indian lands in the state.\u201d
\nThe congressmen went on to chide Governor Noem for not consulting with those of them who represent districts that include tribal lands.
\n\u201c\u2026we could have helped facilitate conversations and given your office unique insights as to the history, culture, protocols, and vernacular of how to work together with Tribal governments,\u201d the congressmen wrote. \u201cYou elected, however, not to contact us and sent an ultimatum to both tribes. We think a better approach is communication rather than confrontation, cooperation rather than constitutional crisis and discussion rather than demands.\u201d
\nLater in the week Noem reversed her order and said the ruling should be left in the hands of the federal government.<\/p>\n

(Contact Justine Anderson@justinekanderson@gmail.com<\/a>)<\/p>\n

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Dewey County Sheriff assisting Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe at\u00a0 checkpoint. EAGLE BUTTE \u2014 The Cheyenne River Sioux and Oglala Sioux tribes are refusing to bow to an order South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem sent the two tribes on May 8. The order states the tribes must remove coronavirus traffic checkpoints <\/p>\n

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Shared by Native Sun News Today<\/a> May 13, 2020<\/p>\n

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