In the summer of a recent year, against the backdrop of the South Dakota countryside near Oglala, a profound moment unfolded for Leonard Little Finger. Holding a lock of hair in his hands, he experienced a palpable connection to the tragic events of Wounded Knee. This lock, believed to have been taken from his great-great-grandfather, Chief Big Foot, following the Wounded Knee Massacre over a century prior, had been reclaimed after decades in a library collection in Barre, Massachusetts.
Little Finger, accompanied by six others, had traveled to New England to retrieve this significant artifact. As he prepared to return the hair to the earth, a profound sense of history enveloped him. He felt as though he could almost hear the cries of the more than 250 Lakota men, women, and children who were brutally killed on December 29, 1890, by the Seventh Cavalry.
"Even though 110 years had gone by, I felt like I had become part of what happened," reflected Little Finger, then 61 years old and the director of Lakota Studies at the Loneman School in Oglala. The weight of history and the tangible link to the past were overwhelming. "It was kind of awesome," he continued, expressing the profound impact of possessing a physical piece of the Wounded Knee tragedy. "All of a sudden, here is something that is a physical part of that massacre. And it’s like it puts you right into it."
The fact that the hair was returned at all signifies a remarkable shift in societal attitudes over the past two decades. A transformation has occurred, prompting a reevaluation of the treatment of tribal remains and artifacts. Items once routinely sought after for display in museums, educational settings, and private collections are now increasingly being repatriated to the lands and people from which they originated. This movement towards repatriation reflects a growing awareness of the historical injustices suffered by Native American tribes and a commitment to respecting their cultural heritage.
Legal Shifts Facilitating Repatriation
This change in attitude has been reinforced by significant legal developments. Several federal laws have played a crucial role in facilitating the return of cultural items or, at the very least, preventing their further removal from tribal lands.
The Archeological Resource Protection Act (ARPA), enacted in 1978, established legal safeguards for archaeological resources. This act made it illegal to excavate archaeological resources, including Native American remains and artifacts, on federal and tribal lands without obtaining a permit. ARPA aimed to protect these resources from unauthorized excavation and damage, recognizing their scientific and cultural importance.
A landmark piece of legislation, the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), was passed in 1990. NAGPRA fundamentally changed the landscape of cultural repatriation by enabling tribes to reclaim Native American remains and artifacts held by museums and collections receiving federal funding. The act also prohibited the sale of human remains, cultural artifacts, and funerary objects that were taken from federal or tribal lands without proper authorization. This legislation provided a legal framework for tribes to assert their rights to their ancestral heritage and to reclaim items that had been taken from them, often without their consent. The act Tribal Descendant Wins Fight to Retrieve Hair.
However, it is important to note that these legal protections were not in place when the library in Barre, Massachusetts, acquired Chief Big Foot’s hair. The acquisition predated NAGPRA and other relevant legislation, highlighting the historical context in which such items were collected.
The Story Behind the Lock of Hair
According to information provided by Massachusetts officials to Little Finger, the acquisition of the hair involved a series of events following the Wounded Knee Massacre. After the massacre, the government contracted private individuals to dig a mass grave and bury the dead. These workers reportedly took items, including pipes, from the bodies. Fearing repercussions, they purportedly buried the items nearby.
"They came back later and dug them up," Little Finger explained. "After they had gone back home to the east, they knew this guy in Barre, an amateur anthropologist, I guess. And they offered these things to him for sell, as many as a hundred of them, which he bought." This amateur anthropologist then kept the items in a trunk for some time before eventually donating them to the local library.
It wasn’t until the mid-1990s that descendants of those who perished at Wounded Knee became aware of the existence of these items in the Barre Library. Little Finger, who was in the area for a speaking engagement, learned about the collection and its potential significance.
The Return of a Piece of History
Following this discovery, several descendants of Wounded Knee victims initiated claims for the return of the lock of hair. Although the Barre Library did not receive federal financial aid and was therefore not legally obligated to return the hair under NAGPRA, the library board recognized the ethical and moral imperative to do so.
Gloria Castriotta, the president of the Barre Library board, stated that returning the hair "was the right thing to do." However, the board also wanted to ensure that the item was repatriated properly and that it was returned to the rightful heir. This commitment to due diligence led to a thorough investigation to determine the legitimate descendant of Chief Big Foot.
The Barre Library board stipulated that any item to be repatriated should be returned to the lineal descendants of the individual to whom it originally belonged. This requirement meant that Little Finger had to provide documentation to the tribal court to establish his legitimate heirship.
Little Finger was able to trace his lineage back six generations. "My grandfather, John Little Finger, was Big Foot’s grandson," he explained. John Little Finger had been present at the Wounded Knee Massacre at the age of 15. He survived the massacre and later settled in Oglala.
Earlier in the year, the Oglala Sioux Tribal Court ruled that Leonard Little Finger was indeed the rightful administrator of Chief Big Foot’s estate, including the lock of hair. This legal determination paved the way for Little Finger and his group to travel to Barre on July 31, 1999, to retrieve the hair.
Honoring the Past and Preserving the Future
Little Finger established a nonprofit, state-chartered foundation called Sitanka Tiwahe, which translates to Big Foot’s Family. His vision is to use the foundation to create a cultural resource and spiritual center in Oglala. This center would include a museum dedicated to preserving the history of his family and the Lakota people.
"I have a chief’s blanket that very well may have belonged to Big Foot," he shared. "We have pipe bags that go back several hundred years, too. We want to establish a facility where they can be preserved." This center would serve as a repository for culturally significant items and as a place for education and reflection.
However, Little Finger was unable to bring back other items from the Barre Library at that time. While NAGPRA allows for the return of items taken from burial scaffolds, such as clothing and human remains, the law does not extend the same funerary attachment to sacred artifacts like pipes.
Castriotta stated that the library had not yet discussed returning any of the other items. Despite this setback, Little Finger remained hopeful that a dialogue could be opened in the future to facilitate the return of these items as well.
For the time being, Little Finger was content with having brought his great-great-grandfather’s lock of hair back to its homeland. The Tribal Descendant Wins Fight to Retrieve Hair represents more than just a victory; it’s a step towards healing.
In August, Little Finger and other descendants of Chief Big Foot performed one of the seven sacred Lakota rites – the keeping and releasing of the soul – in a four-day ceremony. Prayers were offered, songs were sung, and at the conclusion of the ceremony, Chief Big Foot’s hair was burned. The smoke carried their prayers to the heavens as the ashes fell to the ground.
"I don’t have any doubt that it was Big Foot’s hair," Little Finger affirmed. "But then it was never a matter of trying to determine the validity of it for me." His focus was not on proving the authenticity of the hair, but on recognizing its profound significance.
"I simply took it for what it was worth. To me, it was a very powerful connection, in some ways a very sad connection, to Big Foot. And because of it, I felt like I was there. I really felt like I knew the pain of Wounded Knee." The Tribal Descendant Wins Fight to Retrieve Hair is a poignant reminder of the past. It also shows that the fight for justice and healing continues for the Lakota people.