Armed and Ready

Attempting to reach an agreement was hard with the uncompromising U.S. government officials. When the officials insisted that they could not fill the demand to remove Dick Wilson from office, protesters demanded that the U.S. Secretary of State go to Wounded Knee and negotiate. Demands were not met because the White House was distracted with the Watergate Scandal.

Two protesters "armed and ready" [1]

The government was not the only group of people the protesters had to deal with during the occupation. Dick Wilson and his Goons were still inside the perimeter using their power against the Oglalas. Angry with both the government for not taking over Wounded Knee and the Oglalas for protesting, Dick Wilson and his men shot fire at both sides. Their intent was to start a gun fight between the two sides that they could easily escape. The protesters, familiar with Dick Wilson and his games, knew what he and the Goons were doing. Ironically, many protesters had been trained by the government because of military involvement. Because of this, the protesters were able to assign leaders, give orders, and prepare for war, if it were to come. [2] On the other side of things, the government was willing to do whatever it took to avoid bloodshed. An estimated 90% of Americans followed the occupation on the news. [3] If war were to break out on the same site that the Wounded Knee Massacre of 1890 took place, the millions of Americans viewing would have a bad image of the government, which is the last thing they wanted. 

[1] Levi Rickert, Setting the Record Straight, photograph, South Dakota: Augustana College, April 27, 2012, Native News Network, The 1973 Wounded Knee War, Web, http://www.nativenewsnetwork.com/the-1973-wounded-knee-war-setting-the-record-straight.html (accessed April 27, 2012).  

[2] John Kusiak, We Shall Remain: Wounded Knee, DVD, Stanley Nelson (2009: PBS), web.

[3] Kusiak, We Shall.