"Diane Sawyer travels to Pine Ridge Indian Reservation where some of the proudest Americans, living in unthinkable conditions, refuse to be defeated: a young girl filled with “American Idol” dreams, yet facing a life-changing reality; a high school quarterback whose strength and spirit knows no bounds; a magical little girl filled with hope. For over a year, as she has done with the poverty-stricken children from parts of Appalachia and Camden, New Jersey, Sawyer and her team followed young fighters and dreamers, this time from the Lakota Indian Tribe in Pine Ridge, South Dakota, living in the shadows of Mount Rushmore. A once-mighty people desperately trying to hold on, Sawyer finds that even with all of its grinding poverty and alcoholism, it’s a place from which warriors can still rise. Diane Sawyer Investigates – “A Hidden America: Children of the Plains” airs on “20/20″, FRIDAY, OCTOBER 14 (10:00-11:00 p.m., ET) on the ABC Television Network.

The Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, located in the southwest corner of South Dakota, is one of the 565 federally recognized Indian Nations in the United States. It is home to an estimated 30,000 to 40,000 people, most of whom identify as Oglala Lakota Sioux. The reservation is 2.2 million acres, roughly the size of Connecticut, and the residents boast a rich cultural history and deep-seeded spirituality."

Get the Story:
Diane Sawyer Reporting: “A Hidden America: Children of the Plains” on Friday, October 14 (ABC News 10/11)