The Dakota Conference on History, Literature,
Art and Archeology
Held in April, the Dakota Conference examines issues of contemporary significance in their historical and cultural contexts. Recent topics of interest have been water use, urbanization, the Black Hills, and railroads.
Approximately 80 presenters from as many as 15 states gather to present papers and participate in panels at this two-day national conference. Among the nationally recognized speakers have been Gary Clayton Anderson, Glenda Riley, James Sherow, Joseph Amato, Robert Archibald, and Don Hofsommer. Regardless of the theme, the conference seeks the participation of Native peoples in sessions and panels. Native American speakers have included Virginia Driving Hawk Sneve, Tim Giago, Charmaine White Face, Lydia Whirlwind Soldier, and Elizabeth Cook Lynn.
The 44th Annual Dakota Conference
A National Conference on the Northern Plains
April 27-28, 2012
2012 Conference Theme:
Wounded Knee 1973:
Forty Years Later
2012 Program now available! (PDF 11 pages, 716 KB)
Registration Form (1 page)
On December 29,1890, Miniconjou Lakota chief Spotted Elk (Big Foot) and some
300 of his followers were gunned down on the banks of Wounded Knee Creek. Eighty-three years later,
200 Oglala Lakota seized and occupied the town of Wounded Knee, South Dakota, for 71 days. In
observance of the 40th anniversary of the occupation of Wounded Knee in 1973, the Center for Western
Studies is seeking coordinating a conference that will address questions related to Wounded Knee 1973, the 1890 massacre,
as well as any and all aspects of Northern Plains American Indian history and culture.
Some confirmed conference speakers include:
Russell Means, "Wounded Knee: Before, During, and After"
Clyde Bellecourt, co-founder of the American Indian Movement and the American Indian Movement Interpretive Center
Stew Magnuson, author of The Death of Raymond Yellow Thunder
Kevin McKiernan, reporter inside Wounded Knee in 1973
Joseph Trimbach, FBI agent at Wounded Knee in 1973
Judge David Gienapp, assistant U.S. Attorneys prosecuting Wounded Knee cases
Elizabeth Cook-Lynn, American Indian scholar
Michael Her Many Horses, Wounded Knee resident during the occupation
The Center is also hosting a panel presentation on Robert Wuthnow's new book Remaking the Heartland: Middle America since the 1950s. Discussants on the panel include Robert Wuthnow, Pamela Riney-Kehrberg, Annette Atkins, John Miller, Richard Jensen, and Jonathan Lauck.
For more information, please contact: Tim Hoheisel,
CWS Director of Outreach and Promotion at 605.274.4005
Comments and questions about CWS programs may be directed to Dr. Harry Thompson, Executive Director, at 605.274.4007 or harry.thompson@augie.edu.
Pictured above are, left to right, CWS Executive Director Dr. Harry F. Thompson, Dr. Gary D. Olson Augustana College History Professor Emeritus, and CWS Board Chair Martin Oyos. Dr. Olson is receiving the CWS Distinguished Contribution Award from Thompson and Oyos
at the
2011 Dakota Conference.
