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WEDNESDAY, JUNE 25, 2003

Horses are playing a role in today's dedication of a memorial to the Indian warriors who fought at the June 25, 1876, Battle of Little Bighorn.

Descendants of Crazy Horse, one of the Sioux leaders who fought at the battle, rode from the Cheyenne River Sioux Reservation in South Dakota to the Montana site. The 20 riders who took part in the Great Sioux Nation Victory Ride arrived at Crazy Horse's campsite yesterday.

Other tribes have horses participating in the ceremony. The Crow Nation of Montana sent 200, including one riderless horse to represent Lori Piestewa, the Hopi woman killed in action in Iraq. The Oglala Sioux Tribe of South Dakota sent 39, the Northern Cheyenne Tribe of Montana sent 20 horses and the Cheyenne-Arapaho Tribe of Oklahoma sent one.

Today's service includes speeches from spiritual elders, tribal leaders and government officials. The $2.3 million memorial was created after protests from Indian activists, who promised to erect their own memorial unless the National Park Service acted.

Get the Story:
Oglala riders retrace history (The Billings Gazette 6/25)
Built out of protest: Memorial to warriors had passionate beginning (The Billings Gazette 6/25)
127 years later, the other side speaks (The Denver Rocky Mountain News 6/25)

Relevant Links:
Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument - http://www.nps.gov/libi

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