Press Release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 22, 2012
Contact: Donna Salomon, Coordinator
Oglala Sioux Tribe Public Relations
Office of the Tribal President
Oglala Sioux Tribe
Tel:(605)867-8427 or (605)867-8422
RUSSELL MEANS MEMORIAM
Pine Ridge, South Dakota: Oglala Sioux Tribal President John Yellow Bird Steele announced today that he intends to lead an effort to declare war on cancer in Indian country by having the Oglala Sioux Tribe host a national conference on cancer prevention and treatments. Yellow Bird Steele’s decision came upon learning of the death of Russell Means, who passed away at 4:44 a.m. today, October 22, 2012. Means died from inoperable throat cancer, which he had been fighting for several months.
Yellow Bird Steele said that “although Russell was high profile, his death exemplifies the many, many cancer deaths that occur in Indian Country each year caused by the lack of education on cancer prevention, bad diets and good medical care because many oncologists are trained to use only conventional modalities such as chemotherapy, radiation, and surgery as the solution instead of including alternative therapies such as diet, exercise, and spirituality.”
Yellow Bird Steele remembered Russell, who was a personal friend as well as a political opponent, by noting his positive accomplishments during his lifetime. He said, “It is with great sadness to learn about the death of Russell Means. I am asking everyone to remember Russell for all of his positive accomplishments and the good things he did during his lifetime, which include:
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•Helping instill pride of being Indian throughout Indian Country;
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•Helping to bring awareness to and changing public discourse on Native American political issues such as treaties;
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•Becoming a role model for many Indian youth by becoming recording artists and a movie actor and showing that Indian people can succeed in the entertainment world; and
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•Being patriotic to the Oglala Sioux Tribe, and for being a strong advocate for Native Americans nationally.”
Yellow Bird Steele said that “I would like to see Indian Country declare war on cancer, which is now an epidemic throughout Indian Country. I will be asking the Oglala Sioux Tribal Council to sponsor a national conference in Rapid City on “Declaring War on Cancer in Indian Country” later this year, with an emphasis on prevention and on alternative therapies to cancer treatment along with conventional therapies such as chemotherapy and radiation.”
He said “I would like to express my condolences to Russell Mean’s family. Their loss is also a loss to the many members of the Oglala Sioux Tribe who looked up to him and respected him.”
Earlier this year, President John Yellow Bird Steele declared June 26, 2012 as “Russell Means Day” by issuing a Presidential Proclamation entitled “Proclamation of the Oglala Sioux Tribe to Honor Russell Means for his Life-Long Accomplishments, Dedication and Patriotism to the Oglala Sioux Oyate and Oglala Sioux Tribe.”
For more information, please feel free to contact Ms. Donna Salomon, Public Relations Coordinator, OST President’s Office, Pine Ridge, South Dakota at (605)867-8422 or 867-8427 or email: DonnaS@oglala.org
