Bear Butte, Tourism and Sacred Space::

Bear Butte and Tourism

In 1878, Camp Sturgis was established as a military post for the US government, at the foot of Bear Butte. Fort Meade was established later on, in the same area, and its aim was to intercept Indians, protect the stage and wagon roads, and command communication lines between the mining districts and the surrounding prairie which was, at the time, being rapidly filled by settlers. In 1955, the Butte was designated a US National Landmark, and in 1962 it was acquired by South Dakota and fenced off for development as a State Park.

The Butte can be approached several ways, but the official one is through the winding dirt track that leads through the Bear Butte State Park. Administered by the state of South Dakota, three bronze placards greet the visitor and immediately reminds him or her that the site they can see for hundreds of miles away is valued by different people, for different reasons. The first tablet reads:

"Bear Butte has been designated a registered National Landmark under the provision of the Historic Sites Act of August 21, 1955. The site possesses exceptional value in illustrating the natural history of the United States - US Department of the Interior - National Park Service - 1965."

The second:

"Bear Butte entered into the National Register of Historic Places June 19, 1973 under the National preservation Act in the National register because of its spiritual value to the Plains Indians as well as its past as a navigational landmark to early travellers."

And the third:

"Sacred Mountain of the Plains Indians. Noavosse (Cheyenne) 'The Good Mountain', Mato Paha (Sioux) 'Bear Mountain'. Here through the centuries the Plains Indians received spiritual guidance from their creator. Here the Cheyenne prophet, Sweet Medicine, received 4 sacred arrows, the 4 commandments, and a moral code. Here the Sioux worshipped Wankan Tanka, and paid tribute to the Spiritual Ruler. To this day the Indians still make their visits and pray at their Sacred Mountain."

A South Dakota State Park sign hangs close by, announcing that a purchased park entrance license is required by visitors. Those exempt from any fees are "persons participating in religious activities". The ceremonial and hiking trails circle out from the trail contact station, right and left respectively. Once again, the station articulates the variety of significances accorded to the Butte by recreational and ceremonial hikers.

"Welcome to Bear Butte State park," the sign proclaims. This is followed by a quote from the Lakota medicine man, Luther Standing Bear: "We did not think of the great open plains, the beautiful rolling hills, and winding streams with tangled growth as wild. Earth was beautiful and we were surrounded with the blessings of the Great Mystery." Another sign continues:

"This Mountain is a dynamic and living cathedral. It is a sacred place. We are all visitors of this special place. Some of us come for spiritual renewal, some to be closer to nature, and some to learn. Whatever the reason, we must respect this site and the people gathered here. To ensure a positive experience for all, we ask that you observe the following:

• This trail is for foot travel only. Please stay on the designated trails, shortcuts cause erosion.
• Move quietly and speak only in a whisper. If you should encounter someone worshipping near the trail, go by slowly and quietly.
• Colorful prayer cloths and tobacco ties represent prayers and should not be disturbed.
• The use of video and still cameras is limited to recording images of Bear Butte's scenic and natural beauty. DO NOT photograph or videotape ceremonies, sweat lodges or ceremonial objects."

A map of the ceremonial trail is featured, as is an "Ancient Sioux Prayer to the Four Winds", and the following notice: "Respect the Mountain - A Sacred Shrine. Stay on marked trails when hiking. Indians may be praying or fasting near the trails. Do not disturb them. Leave prayer clothes and other Indian religious articles in place. Dispose of litter properly."

Another notice next to the map reads:

"A Religious Shrine. Ancestors of the Kiowas, Mandan, Arikara, Crow, Sioux, and Cheyenne Indians came here to seek visions and pray. As Mount Sinai is to the Christians and Mecca is to the Moslems, Bear Butte is to the Plains Indians - a most sacred spiritual place. Many Indians today continue to have faith in the beliefs of natural power in the universe and they recognize the similarity between their Great Spirit and the God of the white man. As the different Christian groups each have their own church, many Indians feel they too are entitled to worship in their traditional ways. For many tribes Bear Butte is their church. Please respect the beliefs of the Indian people who visit the 'wilderness' areas of this mountain to pray and fast. Stay on the marked trail and avoid the special ritual areas. Hiking trail hours 9-7 daily. Ceremonial trails 9-7 daily."

As one can see, great pains have been made by the state to ensure that recreational visitors are clear as to the spiritual significance the Butte holds for a variety of Indians tribes, especially the present-day Cheyenne and Sioux. But still many problems have arisen. A common complaint expressed to me by Lakota people who used the mountain to pray and vision-quest, and who made use of the special ceremonial space that has been cleared just off the ceremonial trail, to the right of the trail contact station, was that they were frequently disturbed by hikers. These hikers would stand on a hill further up and look down onto the ceremonial space as ceremony was taking place; some would take pictures, using either a camera or a camcorder. Or disturbance might take the form of talking too loudly around specially designated areas. Other complaints included the taking of tobacco ties used for prayer and hanging from various trees and the leaving of trash by picnickers.

Vision-quests are held al the year round on Bear Butte, but the sundance season, during the summer, is a particularly important time for the Lakota and the Butte is used regularly for individual vision-questers. Problems are exacerbated as this time also coincides with tourist season. The Sturgis rally, for example, attracts tens of thousands of motorcyclists to the region every August. Sturgis, in fact, is a only a few miles (six) from the Butte. One Lakota man I spoke with during anthropological fieldwork in 1998 complained of the noise that had accompanied his four-day quest prior to a sundance in early August. Another said,

"I've done hanbleceya on Bear Butte - a long, long time ago. But I would never do it again, because of the tourists that come there. They have made it so it's not conducive to ceremonial prayers - just by their presence. It's rather offensive to be in a ceremony and have people gawking and looking at you, and pointing at you. […] I will never do that again, there. But it's a very powerful place, believe me" (1998).

Following the passage of the American Indian Religious Freedom Act (AIRFA) in 1978, several spiritual leaders of the Lakota and Cheyenne brought a class action suit in federal court seeking declaratory and injunctive relief and damages against the management of the State Park. In the case that came to be known as Fools Crow v. Gullet, the Lakota spiritual leaders argued that Bear Butte was one of their seven sacred sites and as such was regarded as highly sacred; it was the place where spiritual guidance was sought from the Great Spirit; and was a place of instruction. During a vision-quest, the seeker of a vision would climb to a solitary place and pray and sing aloud. Sacred gifts were left on the Butte for Wakantanka. During the four-day fast, the seeker's companions wait at the bottom of the Butte, singing and praying for the seeker. Likewise, Bear Butte was a place of pilgrimage for the Cheyenne people too, they said.

Referring to AIRFA to justify their complaints at the increasing commercialisation of the Butte, the Lakota argued that increased tourist activity diminished the spiritual significance of the site and disrupted religious ceremonies. They also used in their defense the First Amendment, Article 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and Article 18 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.

The trial court held against the Lakota position by siding with the state of South Dakota, whose compelling interest in the site, they stated, was in "preserving the environment and the resource from further decay and erosion, in protecting the health, safety, and welfare of park visitors, and in improving public access to this unique geological and historical landmark". On appeal, in 1983, the Eighth Circuit Court affirmed the trial court and the United States Supreme Court denied a petition for a writ of certiorari.

In February 1998, representatives of several Lakota, Arapaho and Northern Cheyenne tribes met with South Dakota's Commissioner for Tribal Government Relations, Webster Two Hawk and park rangers and administrators from the state's Parks, Fish and Game Department to discuss group recommendations for better management of Bear Butte. Complaints by the Indian tribes ranged from overcrowding of the Butte, the proliferation of prayer cloths, trail renovation, fire protection and management of the park's bison herd. The state's own Mr Two Hawk was very clear that greater importance and care be given to what tribal spiritual leaders and elders say about the Butte. The forum is to be the first of several to be conducted among tribal and non-tribal people.

It is clear from these initiatives that the state is keen to provide some kind of solution to the balancing act the Butte maintains between spiritual and recreational uses of it. Several of the Lakota I spoke to regarding this meeting were cautiously optimistic, saying that the forums are a step in the right direction.

Also in 1998, the Rosebud Sioux tribe (Sicangu Lakota) purchased a small amount of land on the northwestern side of the Butte, from a private, east coast landowner. There they have established a small spiritual retreat centre aimed primarily at the young and elders. Sweat lodges have been put in place, and the tribe is hoping to work with the park rangers to build trails giving access from the centre to the mountain from the northwest side.

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