Russell Charles Means, a prominent and charismatic Oglala Sioux activist, passed away on Monday, October 29, 2012, at the age of 72. His death occurred at his ranch in Porcupine, South Dakota, located on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, a place deeply connected to his heritage and activism. Russell Means was a pivotal figure in the resurgence of the American Indian warrior image during the 1970s. He employed a range of protest tactics, often utilizing guerilla-style demonstrations, to bring national attention to the historical injustices suffered by Native American peoples.
Means had been battling esophageal cancer, a disease that had aggressively spread to his tongue, lymph nodes, and lungs. He received the diagnosis in the summer of 2011, and doctors determined the cancer to be inoperable. In response, Means made a conscious decision to forgo conventional medical treatments in favor of traditional herbal remedies and other Native healing practices, reflecting his deep commitment to his cultural heritage and self-determination.
Russell Means, often seen in striking buckskins, possessed a ruggedly handsome appearance that commanded attention. His face, marked by scars, told a story of a life lived on the front lines. Piercing dark eyes conveyed intensity and unwavering resolve, while his long, raven-black braids, reaching down to his waist, served as a powerful symbol of his identity and connection to his ancestors. By his own admission, Means’ life was often turbulent. He openly acknowledged his struggles with drug and alcohol addiction in his younger years. His involvement in numerous violent clashes with both rivals and law enforcement resulted in repeated arrests. He faced serious charges, including abetting a murder, and endured multiple gunshot wounds, a stabbing, and a year-long prison sentence for rioting.
He consciously cultivated an image that echoed the spirit of his ancestors, those who bravely resisted the westward expansion of the American frontier. He utilized theatrical protests as a means to expose the persistent poverty and discrimination endured by his people. These actions, often generating national media coverage, contributed to his status as arguably the most recognizable American Indian figure in the United States.
However, his methods and motivations were not without critics. Some, including fellow Native Americans, accused him of being a relentless self-promoter who exploited his "angry rebel" persona. This criticism stemmed from his participation in unconventional pursuits, such as running for president and for governor of New Mexico, as well as his extensive acting career, which included a significant role in the acclaimed film The Last of the Mohicans (1992). Additionally, he was involved in commercially producing music with themes centered around Indian warriors and heritage.
Means initially rose to national prominence as a leader within the American Indian Movement (AIM) in 1970. One of his early acts of defiance involved leading a group of Indian protesters in seizing the Mayflower II replica in Plymouth, Massachusetts, on Thanksgiving Day. This bold confrontation, pitting Native Americans against costumed "Pilgrims," garnered widespread network television coverage, instantly transforming Means into a celebrated figure among dissident Indians and sympathetic non-Natives.
Following this event, he orchestrated a prayer vigil at the iconic Mount Rushmore monument in South Dakota. The purpose of this vigil was to highlight Lakota claims to the Black Hills land, an area considered sacred by the tribe. In 1972, Means organized cross-country caravans that converged on Washington, D.C., aiming to protest a century of broken treaties. The culmination of this effort was an occupation of the Bureau of Indian Affairs headquarters.
His activism also extended to challenging cultural representations. He vocally condemned the "Chief Wahoo" mascot of the Cleveland Indians baseball team, a caricature he viewed as racist and demeaning. Despite his efforts, the mascot remained in use for many years.
Perhaps one of his most well-known and impactful actions was the 1973 occupation of Wounded Knee, South Dakota, a site etched in history as the location of the 1890 massacre of approximately 350 Lakota men, women, and children. This event, a tragic culmination of the American Indian wars, served as a potent symbol of the injustices inflicted upon Native Americans. Means, along with hundreds of Indians and white sympathizers, occupied the town for 71 days, demanding strict adherence to old Indian treaties and an end to what they perceived as corrupt tribal governments.
The standoff between the protesters and federal agents resulted in thousands of shots fired, the deaths of two Indians and two FBI agents (one agent was also paralyzed). Means and fellow AIM leader Dennis Banks faced charges of assault, larceny, and conspiracy. However, after a lengthy federal trial in Minnesota in 1974, the case was dismissed by a judge due to prosecutorial misconduct. The defense successfully raised awareness of both contemporary and historical Indian grievances during the trial.
Means continued to face legal challenges in subsequent years. In 1976, he was acquitted of abetting a murder in a barroom brawl in Rapid City, South Dakota. He was also wanted on six warrants in two states and convicted of involvement in a 1974 riot during a clash between police and Indian activists outside a Sioux Falls, South Dakota, courthouse. This conviction led to a year-long prison sentence, during which he was stabbed by another inmate.
Russell Means was also the target of several assassination attempts, surviving multiple gunshot wounds. These incidents included a shooting in the abdomen during an altercation with an Indian Affairs police officer in North Dakota in 1975, a grazing wound to the forehead in what he described as a drive-by assassination attempt on the Rosebud Indian Reservation in South Dakota in the same year, and a chest wound inflicted by another assailant on another South Dakota reservation in 1976.
Despite these dangers, Means remained undeterred in his activism. He led a caravan of Sioux and Cheyenne people to a gathering commemorating the centennial of General George Armstrong Custer’s last stand at Little Bighorn in Montana in 1876, a pivotal event in the Indian Wars. To the rhythm of pounding drums, Means and his followers ascended a speaker’s platform, joined hands, and performed a victory dance, chanting the Sioux Lakota song "Custer Died for Your Sins."
Russell Charles Means was born on November 10, 1939, on the Pine Ridge Reservation. He was the eldest of four sons born to Harold and Theodora Feather Means. The Anglo-Saxon surname "Means" originated with a great-grandfather. When he was three years old, his family relocated to the San Francisco Bay Area, where his father worked as a welder and auto mechanic in wartime shipyards.
Means attended public schools in Vallejo and San Leandro, California. He experienced racial taunts, struggled academically, and narrowly graduated from San Leandro High School in 1958. He became involved in delinquency, drugs, alcoholism, and street fights. He attended four colleges, including Arizona State University at Tempe, but did not earn a degree. Throughout much of the 1960s, he traveled throughout the West, working in various jobs, including as a janitor, printer, cowboy, and dance instructor.
In 1969, he accepted a position with the Rosebud Sioux tribal council in South Dakota. Within a few months, he moved to Cleveland and became the founding director of a government-funded center aimed at assisting Indians in adapting to urban life. It was here that he met Dennis Banks, who had recently co-founded the American Indian Movement. In 1970, Means became the movement’s national director, and his actions over the following decade cemented his place in the public consciousness.
In 1985 and 1986, he traveled to Nicaragua to support the indigenous Miskito Indians, whose autonomy was threatened by the Sandinista government. He reported alleged Sandinista atrocities against the Indians and urged the Reagan administration to provide aid to the victims. Millions of dollars in aid were directed to some anti-Sandinista groups, but Brooklyn Rivera, a leader of the Miskito Indian rebels, claimed that his followers did not receive any of that aid.
In 1987, Russell Means launched a campaign for the presidency of the United States. He sought the Libertarian Party nomination but was ultimately defeated by Ron Paul, a former and future congressman from Texas. In 2002, Means ran as an independent candidate for governor of New Mexico but was barred from the ballot on procedural grounds.
Means retired from the American Indian Movement in 1988, but his departure was met with skepticism by other leaders within the organization, with whom he had been feuding for years. They dismissed his retirement as a recurring event, claiming he had "retired" six times previously. Many disowned him and his work, accusing him of being an opportunist motivated by political and financial gain. In 1989, he testified before Congress, alleging "rampant graft and corruption" in tribal governments and federal programs designed to assist American Indians.
Means embarked on his acting career in 1992 with The Last of the Mohicans, Michael Mann’s adaptation of the James Fenimore Cooper novel. He played the role of Chingachgook, alongside Daniel Day-Lewis and Madeleine Stowe. Over the course of two decades, he appeared in more than 30 films and television productions, including Natural Born Killers (1994) and Pathfinder (2007). He also released music CDs, including Electric Warrior: The Sound of Indian America (1993), and co-authored a memoir titled Where White Men Fear to Tread (1995, with Marvin J. Wolf).
He was married and divorced four times and had nine children. In accordance with Lakota tradition, he also adopted many others. His fifth marriage, to Pearl Daniels, took place in 1999, and she survived him.
A few months before his cancer diagnosis, Means made the symbolic decision to cut off his braids. In an interview given in October before his death, he explained that this gesture was an act of mourning for his people. In Lakota tradition, hair is believed to hold memories, and mourners often cut their hair to release those memories and the people associated with them to the spirit world.
According to the New York Times, Russell Means held a position as the most famous American Indian figure since the legendary Sitting Bull and Crazy Horse.
Further Reading:
- Encyclopedia of the American Indian Movement
- American Indian Activism: ALCATRAZ TO THE LONGEST WALK
- The Life and Death of Anna Mae Aquash
- Ojibwa Warrior: Dennis Banks and the Rise of the American Indian Movement
- Ghost Rider Roads: American Indian Movement 1971-2011
- American Indian Policy in the Twentieth Century
- Russell Means Timeline
- The American Indian Occupation of Alcatraz Island: Red Power and Self-Determination