Cheyenne River Sioux Tribal Chairman Harold Frazier says Governor Kristi Noem did not consult tribal leaders about a permit for fireworks this summer at Mount Rushmore.
Noem’s permit request was rejected and she is suing the U.S. Interior Department. A motion from the tribe says Noem suggests her office talked with tribal governments about the fireworks plan.
Frazier says tribes deserve the right to be consulted because they are the original owners of the land.
“The Black Hills are sacred to us, and we know that we still own the land. There was a court case that said it, instead of trying to give it back, they trying to pay it for us and we still refused the money,” said Frazier. “So we still own that land, and as landowners, we feel not only should we be consulted, but we should be asked permission if we allow that.”
Last year Noem threatened legal action against the tribe over COVID-19 health checkpoints on roads leading into the reservation. The tribe then filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration citing federal abuse of authority.