On the evening of July 6 at the City Council Meeting, Steve Allender with wife Shirley by his side, was sworn in as Rapid City’s new mayor. Also sworn in were Council members Charity Doyle (Ward 1), Ritchie Nordstrom (Ward 2), Jerry Wright (Ward 3), John Roberts (Ward 4), and Brad Estes (Ward 5). The City Council elected Brad Estes as president and Chad Lewis as vice president of the Council for the next year. Photo by Richie Richards
Native Sun News evaluates Rapid City’s ongoing race relations for 2015
By Richie Richards
Native Sun News Staff Writer RAPID CITY –– The year in Rapid City began with two emotionally-charged incidents in which a Lakota man, Allen Locke, was shot dead by a white police officer on Dec. 20, and a visiting non-resident Trace O’Connell, from Phillip, was charged with a violation of a city ordinance for his alleged actions at a Rush Hockey game on Jan. 24. Since these incidents, many tribal members in the community have responded and on some occasions, demanded that action be taken for the imbalance of racial equality in Rapid City. The City of Rapid City and Pennington County have been plagued for generations by accusations of murders and cover-ups, and biased policies against Native American citizens. The year began with a visit from the United States’ Department of Justice’s Community Relations Service. Carol Russo, Rocky Mountain Region’s Regional Director. Russo provided a peacemaking service beginning Jan. 9 to the HeSapa New Life Wesleyan Church, a special meeting with the Pennington County Human Relations Commission, and a rally against racism at the Civic Center. On Jan. 16, the Division of Criminal Investigation announced RCPD Officer Anthony Meirose was justified in his use of lethal force when he shot Allen Locke in front of family members in Lakota Community Homes. Police Chief Karl Jegeris called the killing a “suicide by cop” and Mayor Sam Kooiker did not offer a public apology to the Native community for the shooting. Since the incident, the Rapid City Police Department has implemented training and increased use of non-lethal weapons by officers. Just 9 days later, in the early morning hours of Jan. 25, Allen resident and American Horse School parent, Justin Poor Bear posted on Facebook about a field trip for 57 students who left a Rush Hockey Game early as a result of an alleged verbal and physical assault. “Did Native students stand for the National Anthem?” read the ill-conceived headline in the Rapid City Journal on Jan. 31. This sparked outrage in the Native American community. Journal Executive Editor Bart Pfakuch later apologized for reporter Seth Tupper’s victim-blaming headline mistake. Support poured in from around the world for the American Horse School students; including social media campaigns lending support from afar. Tara Pretends Eagle Weber (Hunkpapa Lakota) began the “I Support the Lakota 57” Facebook page from her home in Florida. She is a social justice publicist and social worker and has been working with victims of violent crime since 1991. On Feb. 18, a charge of disorderly conduct for violation of a city ordinance was filed against Trace O’Connell for the incident at the Rushmore Plaza Civic Center. “We are bound by the evidence as it emerges in the investigation, not as it is reported in the press,” said States Attorney Mark Vargo. The Oglala Sioux Tribal Council passed Resolution 15-30 on Feb. 24 which banned Rapid City Journal sales on the Pine Ridge Reservation and terminated the relationship with the late attorney Patrick Duffy. Beginning Feb. 26 and sponsored by the Barbara Schneider Foundation of Minneapolis, Minn. local organizers and Foundation facilitators began a monthly series of Community Conversations in which people from all walks of life were invited to participate. Hundreds of Rapid City residents have participated in the Conversations; including city officials, educators and tribal members. Communication became the motto for crisis survival. As a result of the many instances of racism in Rapid City, including the Rush Hockey Game incident, the Lakota Nation Invitational Board considered moving the economically-impacting tournament to another location in South Dakota. On Mar. 18, Prairie Edge Galleries hosted a meet and greet mixer for local business owners to show support for the tournament and Native American community. Through careful consideration, the LNI Board agreed to stay put in Rapid City, for now. This was the same day of Trace O’Connell’s first court appearance. His lawyer, the late Patrick Duffy, appeared on his behalf and pled not guilty on behalf of O’Connell. A trial date has been set for July 22 and will take place at Rapid City High School. Security will be tight. Beginning in April, Native Sun News began a series of articles about the Pennington County Sheriff’s Office and their departments including; jail, Juvenile Services Center, Law Enforcement, and City/County Alcohol & Drug Programs. These articles examined the perceived systemic racism in Rapid City and Pennington County; which inspired the county to apply for the Safety & Justice Challenge Grant through the MacArthur Foundation. The county received a grant of $150,000 for research and assessment planning for a future larger grant for justice reform. As the Mayor race in Rapid City heated up, former RCPD officer and investigator, Glen Yellow Robe came forth to publish accusations against then mayor-candidate and former Police Chief Steve Allender in an exclusive interview with Native Sun News published May 6. Yellow Robe claimed to be the victim of years of racial harassment, to which Allender admitted to certain racial jabs and jokes, but denied others including the “Black is beautiful, brown is grand, but white is the color of the big boss man” statement. On May 8, Oglala Lakota College’s HeSapa Center in Rapid City hosted a standing-room-only mayoral debate between Mayor Sam Kooiker and challenger Steve Allender. This was broadcast over KILI Radio, KOLC-TV, and covered by all major media outlets locally. Both candidates answered Native American community-related questions about their professional careers and decisions. The candid dialogue revealed the candidates past and present relationships with the N.A. community. During the weekend of May 8-10, a picture was posted on social media of a Regional Hospital nurse making racially insensitive comments about Native Americans and African Americans. This picture went viral over the weekend and by Monday, May 11; the nurse was fired for her racial tangent. CEO Brent Phillips of Regional Health fired the nurse and boldly said publicly, “Hate, bullying and racism have no room at Regional or Rapid City!” Phillips’ stand against racism was a major step for positive race relations and sent shock waves across the region. The Pennington County Commission Meeting held on June 16 was a major set-back for race relations as the Commission voted to support not changing the name of Harney Peak. Chairman Lyndell Peterson openly claimed he was “too old and lazy to spend much time trying to be politically correct,” while members of the public made comments to the Commission disregarding Native American spiritual belief systems and historical practices. After a hard-fought campaign from both candidates, on June 2 Rapid City voters elected Steve Allender as mayor. He was sworn in at the City Council Meeting on July 6. Allender appeared on the FOCUS program on KEVN-TV hosted by Jack Caudill, with Lakota publisher Tim Giago, on July 3, a program aired on July 5, to discuss his approach to race relations and to stand behind the proclamation made by outgoing Mayor Sam Kooiker and signed by himself for a Renewed Year of Reconciliation in Rapid City. This was a giant move in race relations that received no coverage whatsoever from the Rapid City Journal. As Kooiker steps down and Mayor Allender inherits the city’s civic and racial problems, the Indian community watches and waits for the fulfillment of reconciliation leading to better race relations. As in the first half of 2015, Native Sun News will continue to stay in the forefront of news reporting covering race relations throughout the rest of the year. (Contact Richie Richards at staffwriter@nsweekly.com) Copyright permission Native Sun News
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