Russell Means

This week on From the Vault we offer a tribute to legendary Native American activist Russell Means (1939-2012) through the broadcast of a recording titled Native American Spiritual Values.

Russell Means was a prominent member of the American Indian Movement (AIM), a defendant in the 1973 Native American occupation of Wounded Knee, and appeared in several films throughout the 1990’s, using his influence and celebrity to draw attention to the decline of Indian culture. Following a new 2012 introduction by KPFK host Margaret Prescod, we’ll hear Means deliver a 1974 speech in Minneapolis that puts forth AIM as a spiritual movement, explores the Native American view of earth as mother, and establishes equality of human beings with all other living things.


Share This Episode