The Lakota Sioux Indians of the Great Plains possess rich religious traditions which are tied closely to the Earth. Though the relegation of these people to reservations amid the environmental disasters of American development has resulted in the near destruction of an ancient culture, some Lakota Sioux continue to fight for the preservation of their sacred lands animals, civil rights, and way of life.The seven original bands of the Great Sioux Nation were joined in an alliance called the Seven Council Fires. This confederation included three separate groups, each with its own dialect; the Santee spoke Dakota, the Yankton spoke Nakota, and the Teton spoke Lakota. By 1800, the Great Sioux Nation covered most of the Northern plains, including the Dakotas, Northern Nebraska, Eastern Wyoming, and Southeastern Montana. The United States purchased the Louisiana Territory from France in 1803. The westward expansion that followed eventually lead to the depletion of the buffalo, an animal sacred and central to the Lakota way of life. In 1866 Chief Red Cloud lead a successful fight to close off the Bozeman Trail, a pass leading to the gold mines of Montana. This trail crossed over traditional Lakota hunting grounds, and heavy traffic resulted in desecration of many sacred lands. Hope came in 1868 in the form of the Fort Laramie Treaty, which established the Great Sioux Reservation, encompassing most of present-day South Dakota west of the Missouri River, including the Black Hills. The U.S. government pledged to keep whites out of this territory, but this agreement was soon reneged upon. In 1874 Lt. Col. George A. Custer discovered gold in the Black Hills, sending a rush of prospectors to the area. The Battle of Little Big Horn erupted on June 25, 1876 after Custers troops attacked a large Indian encampment. Custer lost his entire command of more than 200 men in the battle. A congressional act in 1889 split the Great Sioux reservati...
