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Dakota Land

Chorus:

Dakota Land was Indian land,
Dakota Land was free,
The white man came,
Now all that remain,
Are the reservations,
And the broken treaties.

Narration:

He stands alone, his head held high,
His eyes have dimmed with age. 
When days of yore pass in review,
His heart can fill with rage.

He was a mighty warrior then,
Sioux was his name,
Dakota Land was his alone,
Before the white man came.

The rivers wide, the rolling hills,
The thundering buffalo masses,
Rabbit, deer and phesant hide,
Among the prairie grasses.

Women tanned the hides for winter,
Spread the berries out to dry,
Gathered roots and herbs and bark,
To keep the winter colic out.

The warrior grand in his aray,
With achievements he could boast,
The boys playing warrior games,
Among ancesteral ghosts.

The strangers came, first there was one,
And then there was another.
What harm could these strange people do,
Amidst the mighty hunter.

Then everything began to change,
The white man brought decay,
The brilliant skies of blue he knew,
Soon turned to darkest gray.

He smoked the peace pipe, signed their treaties,
Gave his word and hand,
Then came the final crushing blow,
His own Dakota Land.

They put him on the reservation, 
Told him here he was to stay,
Said that there would be much blood shed,
If he tried to go away.

Then came the wars, the rageing battles,
Their blood did mingle then .
Even with his many victories,
How could the Indian win.

To ease their conscience, they'd provide,
Clothing, food and bread,
Can this ever pay them back
For freedom, when it's dead?

Laughing Water, Singing Dove,
Crazy Horse and more,
Long time gone but in the heart,
There still remains the scar.

He stands alone, his head held high,
His eyes have dimmed with age.
But in his heart Dakota Land,
And Sioux, are still the same.

Chorus:

                    Cile Beer


written l975

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