The Oglala Sioux tribal council passed a law against LGBTQ+ hate crimes, making it likely the first Native nation in the U.S. to do so, Indian Country Today reports.
Hate crimes committed by people in the Oglala Sioux Tribe are now punishable by up to one year in jail. The new law is modeled on a federal hate crime law: the Matthew Shepherd and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Protection Act of 2009.
The Oglala Sioux reservation is in South Dakota, a state that doesn’t specifically protect LGBTQ+ folks in its hate crime laws. But federally recognized Native tribes are considered “domestic dependent nations” and therefore have some autonomy to create their own laws. In July 2019, the Oglala Sioux Tribe became the first to legalize same-sex marriage.
The Oglala Sioux Tribe closed the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation to all non-residents for non-essential travel, though vehicles could pass through without stopping. Oglala Sioux Tribe Department of Corrections. Oglala Sioux Tribe Department of Corrections. The Department of Corrections would like to send sincere condolences and prayers to the family and friends of DT 265 Vincent “Buckles” Pilcher, we received word this morning of his passing into the spirit world.
A lesbian couple of the Oglala Sioux Tribe lobbied for the new laws. Monique Mousseau and Felipa DeLeon say they have been repeatedly threatened and “gay-bashed” by fellow tribal members over their sexuality.
The Akta Lakota Museum & Cultural Center, an educational outreach of St. Joseph’s Indian School is committed to promoting the knowledge and understanding of the Northern Plains Indian Culture past, present and future, through the preservation of historical artifacts and contemporary works of art. First used in 1961, this flag was approved by the Oglala Sioux Tribal OST Council on March 9, 1962, as the flag of the Oglala Sioux Tribe (OST). The circle of nine tipi on the flag represent the nine districts of the reservation: Porcupine, Wakpamni, Medicine Root, Pass Creek, Eagle Nest, White Clay, LaCreek, Wounded Knee, and Pine Ridge.
“LGBTQ folks and their families and friends on Pine Ridge often contact us for support and advice after their loved ones are attacked or commit suicide,” Mousseau told Indian Country Today. “Although authorities haven’t been keeping data, we know that many suicides on the reservation are related to gay-bashing and shaming.”
The couple hopes the new hate crime law will help protect LGBTQ+ youth in particular.
Tribal Pass - Ost & Artifacts
“We need to protect our children,” DeLeon said. “I have children and grandchildren. I don’t know how they will identify themselves when they grow up but I want to know they will be safe.”
Tribal Pass - Ost & Artist
Only 35 out of 573 federally recognized tribes have legalized same-sex marriage.