WOUNDED KNEE, S.D. — Rachel Thunder stood on a snowy hill in Wounded Knee, inspired to continue the work of those who occupied this village 50 years ago in a historic stand for Indigenous rights.
About to embark on the 570-mile trip back home to Minneapolis this week, Thunder was determined to join other members of the American Indian Movement (AIM) in their modern quest for justice. Soon, she would be testifying at the Minnesota Legislature, seeking funding for an alternate plan to stop the Roof Depot warehouse from demolition by the city of Minneapolis, amid neighbors' concerns of spreading contaminants. It's just one of a series of challenges that many of today's Indigenous leaders are trying to address.
"The guidance that those Wounded Knee veterans gave to us," she recalled, "was to never give up, to always do the right thing and stand up for the people even if it's hard."
