Cancelled Native American events had $20 million impact on racist South Dakota town

Rapid City's population is about 11% Native but South Dakota's jails and prisons are overwhelmingly warehousing American Indians. Journalist Tim Giago sees little difference between Rapid City and Ferguson, Missouri where Michael Brown's family filed a wrongful death lawsuit against that police department. Daniel Tiger chose to take out two Rapid City police personnel with him rather than be gunned down in cold blood like Christopher Capps was. 

In an effort to avoid yet another high profile racism incident the Rapid City Rush added an alcohol-free family section to the civic center.

 

After Trace O'Connell and other entitled white guys from Philip spilled beer on a group of American Horse School students Rapid City businesses shat all over themselves trying to extinguish the wildfire of anger. Organizers of the Lakota Nation Invitational even sought alternative locations for the annual event. Sioux Falls, Bismarck and Spearditch were considered. 

According to data supplied courtesy of Visit Rapid City, the cancellation of the Black Hills Powwow (BHPW) and the Lakota Nation Invitational (LNI), both held mainly at the Rushmore Plaza Civic Center, combined for a loss of almost 20 million dollars: 

Black Hills Powwow: 10/4/2019 Economic Impact: $3,762,928 10/5/2018 Economic Impact: $2,868,174

Lakota Nation Invitational 12/11/2019: Economic Impact: $15,754,496 12/12/2018: Economic Impact: $17,337,656

Read the rest at Native Sun News Today.

In a related story, instead of repatriating unceded land to the tribal nations signatory to the Fort Laramie Treaties the State of South Dakota just sold the stigmatized former State Treatment and Rehabilitation (STAR) Academy in a county named for a war criminal to a group of white developers.

Read that here.