Dakota Location

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Prior to treaty with the United States, the land base of the Dakota included the Midwestern Plains of southern Minnesota and parts of Wisconsin, Iowa, and South Dakota (Peterson 2008). Today there are Dakota reservations in Minnesota, North and South Dakota, Nebraska, and Montana in the United States and reserves in southern Manitoba and Saskatchewan in Canada. There are also many Dakota living off-reservation.

Most reservations diminished in size because of government allotment policies during the 20^th century (ILTF). Like other Native peoples across the United States, Dakota communities are attempting to recover their land. The Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community is rapidly purchasing land and restoring it to native prairie using profits from the Mystic Lake Casino. So far they have increased their land base nearly tenfold (Peterson 2008). The Upper Sioux Community has purchased over 600 acres of ancestral lands, increasing their land base to 1,440 acres (Upper Sioux). Reservations without profitable casinos have more difficulty recovering land.

Spirituality

A sense of place is incredibly important to the Dakota because of their strong spiritual connection to the land. Specific locations are connected to events recorded in oral history that are a strong part of Dakota identity (Wilson 2005). Many Dakota harvest traditional foods and medicines that grow locally (SMSC 2007).

Urban Dakota

There were American Indians living in urban areas throughout the 20^th century, but the urban Indian population increased dramatically post-World War II because of increased economic opportunities in cities. From the 1950s to 1970s the BIA ran a relocation program to encourage Indians to migrate to urban areas (Beck 2002). Dakota people relocated as far as the San Francisco Bay Area seeking income to support their families (Kemnitzer 1970).

Migrants adapt to city life by developing relationships with relocated Indians of other tribes, adopting a strong pan-Indian identity. Urban Indian organizations serve as advocates for Native people, sources of support for families who are struggling, and as cultural centers. Urban Dakota communities maintain the Dakota values of visiting and helping each other, creating an important network of support (Kemnitzer 1970).

Links

The content of this page was carefully researched, but the author is not an expert on Dakota culture.

If you are Dakota, your feedback is much appreciated.

Beck, David R.M.

2002   Developing a Voice: The Evolution of Self-Determination in an Urban Indian Community. Wicazo Sa Review

17(2):117-141.

Indian Land Tenure Foundation

Allotment Information for the Midwest BIA Region. Electronic document, http://www.indianlandtenure.org, accessed May 20, 2009.

Kemnitzer, L.S.

1970   Familial and Extra-Familial Socialization in Urban Dakota Adolescents. In The Modern Sioux. Ethel Nurge, ed.

Pp.246-267. Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press.

Peterson, David

2008  Tribe is reclaiming a lost legacy. Minneapolis-St. Paul Star Tribune, South Metro, May 3.

Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community

    2007  Stewards of the Earth. Electronic document, http://www.ccsmdc.org/stewards.html, accessed March 24, 2009.

Upper Sioux Community

     Our History. Electronic document, http://www.uppersiouxcommunity-nsn.gov/pages/history.htm, accessed December 2008.

Wilson, Waziyatawin Angela

    2005  Remember This! Dakota Decolonization and the Eli Taylor Narratives. Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press.

Written by: Melissa Lorentz, 2009.