The U.S. Senate considers Indian Country legislation on November 21, 2024, during which Sen. Thom Tillis (R-North Carolina) blocked passage of a bill to protect the Wounded Knee massacre site in South Dakota.

The debate began when Sen. Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii), the chair of the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs, brought up three Indian Country bills for consideration en bloc. Sen. Mike Rounds (R-South Dakota) then attempted to have S.2088, the Wounded Knee Massacre Memorial and Sacred Site Act, considered for passage as well.

That’s when Tillis objected.

Tillis said he would not allow for passage of the Wounded Knee sacred site bill because he has not been able to secure federal recognition for the Lumbee Tribe, a state-recognized group in North Carolina.

As a result, the Senate was not able to pass S.2088, which comes 134 years after U.S. Army soldiers massacred more than 300 Lakota women, children, elders and men at Wounded Knee on December 29, 1890.

Despite Tillis’s objection, the Senate was able to pass the Indian bills that were brought to the floor by Schatz. They follow:

* S.385, a bill to update the Native American Tourism and Improving Visitor Experience Act, also known as the NATIVE Act, by promoting tourism in American Indian, Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian communities.

* S.1322, the Unlocking Native Lands and Opportunities for Commerce and Key Economic Developments Act, a bill to ensure tribes can lease their lands for economic development and other purposes without seeking federal approval for every action.

* S.2868, a bill to ensure the Lower Sioux Indian Community in Minnesota can pursue economic development opportunities without seeking federal approval for every action.