Why not get along together with your neighbor?

Mr. Smoke talks about commemorating the events of 1862.

Audio Chapters

DL: What do you think is the best way to commemorate those events? You said, “briefly,” but what would be- just a brief history lesson in school, or…

LS: Yah, I would say, you know it would be alright for some people; some people, they wouldn’t like it. I would say something like that will kind of divide the people; it seemed that way, that Indian people on one side- it kind of divides them like that. That’s just what it seems like, the way I look at it, and I’ve noticed a lot of places where we’ve been to school with children, amongst the children. Still today they get all riled up over something like that now, Indians. So I tell them, why not get along together with your neighbor or people that you walk with, talk with- why not get together as one people; be as people, you know. Treat each other good.

Oral History- Interview | Narrator Leslie Smoke Interviewer Deborah Locke in Dakota Tipi First Nation Manitoba, Canada | Wednesday, May 30, 2012

Citation: Minnesota Historical Society. U.S. - Dakota War of 1862. Why not get along together with your neighbor? March 28, 2024. http://www.usdakotawar.org/node/1494

Viewpoints: All viewpoints expressed on this website are those of the contributors, and are not representative of the Minnesota Historical Society.