Lakota Lands Recovery Project

Dear LLRP Supporters, 

Thank you for making this an especially impactfuly spring for the Lakota Lands Recovery Project. LLRP began in 2003 to support grassroots organizations on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota working to reclaim and consolidate tribal lands and access the resources needed for the Lakota people to live on, protect, and utilize it, helping to return the balance between economy, ecology, and culture.

This spring we were focused on helping  Edward Iron Cloud III, member of the Oglala Sioux Tribe and lifetime resident of the Pine Ridge Reservation acquire 1500 acres of land near his community of Porcupine and adjacent to the bison pasture he manages for the Knife Chief Buffalo Nation, a Native-run community organization. He and his family plan to use this land as a camp for individuals and groups visiting the Reservation. I'm happy to say we were successful in this effort and obtained the lease from the Bureau of Indian Affairs in February of 2015. 

We have also continued working on our campaign to investigate the USDA's Indian Tribal Lands Acquisition Program. They finally responded to our FOIA request (waiting until the very last day allowed by law). Our focus now is to tabulate the data and reach out to the different tribes who have received loans under this program to learn about how they have impacted their Reservation (positevely and negatively). We were initialy concerned about this program after learning that the Oglala Sioux Tribe has been struglling to pay these loans back after they were granted in the last 1970s and how all of their land is controlled by the USDA as a result. 

We'll keep you updated on these exciting initiatives. If you haven't done so already, be sure to sign up on our mailing list on our website at http://www.villageearth.org/global-affiliates/pine-ridge-reservation and follow us on facebook https://www.facebook.com/lakotalands?fref=ts

Thanks so much for all your help! Our work wouldn't be possible without your help!