American Indian Movement of Colorado
Encyclopedia
The American Indian Movement of Colorado (Colorado AIM), also called AIM-International Confederation of Autonomous Chapters, split by 1993-1994 from the Minneapolis-based, national organization of the American Indian Movement
, since then known as the AIM Grand Governing Council, which claims the right to the name. The organizations had tried to keep their dissension internal and presented the split as an ideological one. Notable activists associated with AIM of Colorado have been Russell Means
and Ward Churchill
.
Russell Means
, a notable American Indian
activist, serves on AIM's Elders
Council. In 1999 he held a press conference in Denver with Robert Pictou-Branscombe, a maternal cousin of Anna Mae Pictou Aquash, the high-ranking AIM woman who was murdered in December 1975 at the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation
. Both Branscombe, a Canadian, and Means accused top-ranking AIM leader Vernon Bellecourt
of Minneapolis of having ordered the execution of Aquash, on the mistaken belief that she was a Federal Bureau of Investigation
(FBI) informant. Means alleged that Vernon's brother Clyde Bellecourt
, a founder of AIM and continuing leader, was also implicated in the death of Aquash. He said that some members of AIM had tried to expel the two brothers, and this was the ultimate reason for the split in the organization. Branscombe and Means said that Arlo Looking Cloud, Theda Nelson Clark and John Graham had been directly involved in the kidnapping and murder of Aquash.
On 4 November 1999, in a followup show on Native American Calling the next day, Vernon Bellecourt denied any involvement by him and his brother in the death of Aquash. He suggested that Means had been involved.
Looking Cloud and Graham were indicted by a federal grand jury in 2003, and convicted of the murder of Aquash in 2004 and 2010, respectively. Each is serving a life sentence. By the time of the indictments, Theda Nelson Clark was being cared for in a nursing home and was not indicted.
The Colorado AIM came to national attention in 2005 because of publicity related to one of its leaders, Ward Churchill
, who was fired that year from his tenured position as professor at the University of Colorado-Boulder after an investigation into academic misconduct. He serves on the Leadership Council of AIM of Colorado.
Recent AIM activism in Colorado
has centered on protests against the Columbus Day
parade
, held annually in Denver
.
Colorado AIM supports Ward Churchill
and maintains an online petition in support of him.
American Indian Movement
The American Indian Movement is a Native American activist organization in the United States, founded in 1968 in Minneapolis, Minnesota by urban Native Americans. The national AIM agenda focuses on spirituality, leadership, and sovereignty...
, since then known as the AIM Grand Governing Council, which claims the right to the name. The organizations had tried to keep their dissension internal and presented the split as an ideological one. Notable activists associated with AIM of Colorado have been Russell Means
Russell Means
Russell Charles Means is an Oglala Sioux activist for the rights of Native American people. He became a prominent member of the American Indian Movement after joining the organisation in 1968, and helped organize notable events that attracted national and international media coverage...
and Ward Churchill
Ward Churchill
Ward LeRoy Churchill is an author and political activist. He was a professor of ethnic studies at the University of Colorado at Boulder from 1990 to 2007. The primary focus of his work is on the historical treatment of political dissenters and Native Americans by the United States government...
.
Russell Means
Russell Means
Russell Charles Means is an Oglala Sioux activist for the rights of Native American people. He became a prominent member of the American Indian Movement after joining the organisation in 1968, and helped organize notable events that attracted national and international media coverage...
, a notable American Indian
Indigenous peoples of the Americas
The indigenous peoples of the Americas are the pre-Columbian inhabitants of North and South America, their descendants and other ethnic groups who are identified with those peoples. Indigenous peoples are known in Canada as Aboriginal peoples, and in the United States as Native Americans...
activist, serves on AIM's Elders
American Indian elder
In American Indian education, within each tribe elders, "are repositories of cultural and philosophical knowledge and are the transmitters of such information," including, "basic beliefs and teachings, encouraging...faith in the Great Spirit, the Creator"...
Council. In 1999 he held a press conference in Denver with Robert Pictou-Branscombe, a maternal cousin of Anna Mae Pictou Aquash, the high-ranking AIM woman who was murdered in December 1975 at the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation
Pine Ridge Indian Reservation
The Pine Ridge Indian Reservation is an Oglala Sioux Native American reservation located in the U.S. state of South Dakota. Originally included within the territory of the Great Sioux Reservation, Pine Ridge was established in 1889 in the southwest corner of South Dakota on the Nebraska border...
. Both Branscombe, a Canadian, and Means accused top-ranking AIM leader Vernon Bellecourt
Vernon Bellecourt
Vernon Bellecourt, Indian name WaBun-Inini, was a member of the White Earth Band of Ojibwe , and a Native American rights activist, one of the highest leaders in the American Indian Movement...
of Minneapolis of having ordered the execution of Aquash, on the mistaken belief that she was a Federal Bureau of Investigation
Federal Bureau of Investigation
The Federal Bureau of Investigation is an agency of the United States Department of Justice that serves as both a federal criminal investigative body and an internal intelligence agency . The FBI has investigative jurisdiction over violations of more than 200 categories of federal crime...
(FBI) informant. Means alleged that Vernon's brother Clyde Bellecourt
Clyde Bellecourt
Clyde Howard Bellecourt is a White Earth Ojibwe civil rights organizer noted for co-founding the American Indian Movement in 1968 with Dennis Banks, Herb Powless, and Eddie Benton Banai, among others. His older brother, the late Vernon Bellecourt, was also active...
, a founder of AIM and continuing leader, was also implicated in the death of Aquash. He said that some members of AIM had tried to expel the two brothers, and this was the ultimate reason for the split in the organization. Branscombe and Means said that Arlo Looking Cloud, Theda Nelson Clark and John Graham had been directly involved in the kidnapping and murder of Aquash.
On 4 November 1999, in a followup show on Native American Calling the next day, Vernon Bellecourt denied any involvement by him and his brother in the death of Aquash. He suggested that Means had been involved.
Looking Cloud and Graham were indicted by a federal grand jury in 2003, and convicted of the murder of Aquash in 2004 and 2010, respectively. Each is serving a life sentence. By the time of the indictments, Theda Nelson Clark was being cared for in a nursing home and was not indicted.
The Colorado AIM came to national attention in 2005 because of publicity related to one of its leaders, Ward Churchill
Ward Churchill
Ward LeRoy Churchill is an author and political activist. He was a professor of ethnic studies at the University of Colorado at Boulder from 1990 to 2007. The primary focus of his work is on the historical treatment of political dissenters and Native Americans by the United States government...
, who was fired that year from his tenured position as professor at the University of Colorado-Boulder after an investigation into academic misconduct. He serves on the Leadership Council of AIM of Colorado.
Recent AIM activism in Colorado
Colorado
Colorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains...
has centered on protests against the Columbus Day
Columbus Day
Many countries in the New World and elsewhere celebrate the anniversary of Christopher Columbus's arrival in the Americas, which occurred on October 12, 1492, as an official holiday...
parade
Parade
A parade is a procession of people, usually organized along a street, often in costume, and often accompanied by marching bands, floats or sometimes large balloons. Parades are held for a wide range of reasons, but are usually celebrations of some kind...
, held annually in Denver
Denver, Colorado
The City and County of Denver is the capital and the most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Denver is a consolidated city-county, located in the South Platte River Valley on the western edge of the High Plains just east of the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains...
.
Colorado AIM supports Ward Churchill
Ward Churchill
Ward LeRoy Churchill is an author and political activist. He was a professor of ethnic studies at the University of Colorado at Boulder from 1990 to 2007. The primary focus of his work is on the historical treatment of political dissenters and Native Americans by the United States government...
and maintains an online petition in support of him.