Wounded Knee: On this date in 1890, the federal government opened fire on some 350 Lakota (Sioux) indians on the Pine Ridge reservation in South Dakota. The massacre at Wounded Knee (Canke Opi Wahkpala)--killing as many as 300 unarmed Sioux children, women, and men, including chief Big Foot (Sitanka)--essentially ended the Indian Wars. One hundred thirteen years later, the US government hasn't apologized for the massacre.

A member of the Santee Sioux tribe, Hoksila Waste (pronounced Hoke-shee-la Wash-tay), a.k.a. Sid Byrd, wrote at the time that the government feared a spiritual renewal among the Lakota that took the form of the Ghost Dance. Byrd believed that Big Foot died a martyr for embracing the ritual "as freely as other men embraced their religion." Six months earlier, in June 1890, Ms. Z. A. Parker witnessed and described The Ghost Dance.

Also: Click here for an incredible resource on the Massacre at Wounded Knee, including info on efforts to rescind 20 Medals of Honor awarded to participating troops, the author of The Wizard of Oz's declaration that genocide of the Lakota would be a good thing, and testimony given by Wounded Knee survivors.