Remembering a Lakotah Warrior: Russell Means

Abstract

S P R I N G 2 0 1 4 W I C A Z O S A R E V I E W I met Russell Means for the first time in the spring of 2012 when he spoke to a large audience at Mesa Community College in Arizona. Although weakened from illness, he aroused an audience consisting of past and present American Indian Movement members, students, community members, faculty, and staff with a passionate oration about such issues as Indian struggles against colonialism for sovereignty, genocide, human rights, economic independence, religious freedom, and cultural survival. He expressed a theme noting that Indian peoples and nations were at war for their social, political, and economic survival. On several occasions during the next, final months of his life, I had the good fortune to learn more about his philosophies, beliefs, and life’s work. I never expected to meet Russell Means so the opportunity to do so was humbling. What I knew about him was mainly focused on his involvement with grassroots movements such as the American Indian Movement and more recently, the “Republic of Lakotah” movement in his homeland. In the latter movement, Russell was attempting to regain/retain tribal inherent rights by approaching the United Nations for support. I expected to meet a man who could mentor me in developing ideas to promote nation building in Indigenous communities dealing with colonial genocide. He gave me much more than that. During our the first meeting in Mesa, aware that I was a law student, he declared, “I hate lawyers.” I responded by saying “Me, too.” Obviously, I did not actually hate lawyers and neither did Russell. However, Remembering a Lakotah Warrior russell Means