Sen. Thom Tillis (R-North Carolina) is blocking a bill that would protect the Wounded Knee massacre site in South Dakota.

During debate on the floor of the U.S. Senate on November 21, 2024, Tillis objected to consideration of S.2088, the Wounded Knee Massacre Memorial and Sacred Site Act. He objected because he hasn’t been able to secure federal recognition for the Lumbee Tribe, a state-recognized group in his home state of North Carolina.

A fellow Republican — Sen. Mike Rounds (R-South Dakota) — is the sponsor of S.2088. The bill would protect 40 acres at the Wounded Knee massacre site on behalf of the Oglala Sioux Tribe and the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe.

Due to Tillis’s objection, the Senate was not able to pass the bill, 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.

And despite his objection, the Senate was able to pass three Indian bills that were brought to the floor by Sen. Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii), the chair of the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs. 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.

Video Source: U.S. Senate

Thumbnail photo of Wounded Knee cemetery on the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota by Jeremiah M. Murphy (CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)