Hi there,

This month, Democracy Now! marks 29 years of fearless independent journalism. Presidents have come, gone and come back again, but Democracy Now! remains, playing the same critical role in our democracy: shining a spotlight on corporate and government abuses of power and raising up the voices of scholars, advocates, scientists, activists, artists and ordinary people working for a more peaceful and just world. If our journalism is important to you, please donate today in honor of our 29th anniversary. Every dollar makes a difference. Thank you so much.

Democracy Now!

Amy Goodman

Non-commercial news needs your support.

We rely on contributions from you, our viewers and listeners to do our work. If you visit us daily or weekly or even just once a month, now is a great time to make your monthly contribution.

Please do your part today.

Donate

Chair of Standing Rock Sioux Calls on Obama to Free Leonard Peltier

Web ExclusiveDecember 23, 2016

David Archambault, the chairman of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe, has become the latest high-profile figure to urge President Obama to grant clemency for Native American activist Leonard Peltier who has been imprisoned for 40 years.

“You have appreciated, more than any other President in recent memory, the tumultuous history of Native Americans, and the tragic events derived from that history,” Archambault wrote to Obama.


Leonard Peltier is a former member of the American Indian Movement who was convicted of killing two FBI agents during a shootout on South Dakota’s Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in 1975. Leonard Peltier has long maintained his innocence. The shootout occurred two years after the American Indian Movement occupied the village of Wounded Knee for 71 days. The occupation of Wounded Knee is considered the beginning of what Oglala people refer to as the “Reign of Terror.”

Free Leonard Peltier: Obama Urged to Grant Clemency to Native American Activist Jailed for 40 Years

Related Story

StoryFeb 19, 2025“I Am Finally Free!”: Indigenous Leader Leonard Peltier Released After Nearly 50 Years Imprisoned
The original content of this program is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License. Please attribute legal copies of this work to democracynow.org. Some of the work(s) that this program incorporates, however, may be separately licensed. For further information or additional permissions, contact us.

Non-commercial news needs your support

We rely on contributions from our viewers and listeners to do our work.
Please do your part today.
Make a donation
Top