I haven’t found much information on this issue, but there are enough clues (and enough historical ties) to make some speculation possible … but it’s only speculation.

Doug Noon shared this article from the Rapid City Journal through Google Reader.  The focus is on Russell Means, one of the leaders of this current movement to secede, and it seems that the movement consists of an "unofficial group" of Lakota peoples.  The article makes it clear that the group is "not an agency or branch of the Oglala Sioux Tribe" and notes that Means "ran unsuccessfully for president of the tribe in 2006."  There’s no indication that Means speaks for any of the elected Sioux leaders, or the nation as a whole, and it seems likely that this is a fringe group, with a vocal leader, that ultimately will not amount to any real change.¹

Means has been considered an extreme activist by many for quite a while, starting with his involvement with the American Indian Movement.  I met him once, and he has an unquestionably intense personality and powerful presence.  I can see how others could be drawn to his vision and recruited to his causes.  It’s probably that same presence that landed him some of his film roles.²  Still, that charisma hasn’t proven powerful enough to win him an office in the Sioux government.  Will it be enough to sustain this present movement?

I do admire his strength and commitment to fight for American Indian/Native American pride, culture, and political power.³  The history of native/U.S. relations is painful, to say the least, and full of U.S. deception and duplicity.

I still don’t see any way that this movement can actually achieve what Means and the other members of the group envision, though I can understand how years of unsatisfied anger can lead to unsupportable actions.

Other articles on: WikiNews and AFP

1. This sentiment also appears in the discussion on the Lakota People page on Wikipedia.
2. Last of the Mohicans, Natural Born Killers, Into the West, Pocahontas, and Pathfinder
3. Means would prefer American Indian, though other native peoples with whom I’ve spoken prefer Native American.