Understanding Kristi Noem's total tribal banishment

The relationship between a state government and the sovereign Indigenous nations that reside within is a complicated one, existing on a fault line etched by hundreds of years of well-earned mistrust on the part of Native Americans, and deeply uneven treatment by both state and federal authorities. That dynamic has been on full display recently in South Dakota, where last week the executive council of the Flandreau Santee Sioux Tribe voted to ban Republican Gov. Kristi Noem from their territory following a series of provocative statements by Noem. She alleged that some tribes work with Mexican drug cartels on South Dakota reservations and that Indigenous children "have no hope." In doing so, the Flandreau Santee Sioux Tribe becomes the "last of the state's Dakota, Lakota and Nakota tribal governments to endorse Noem's banishment and the eighth [of nine] to make it official," The Argus Leader said. The Yankton Sioux Tribe's Business and Claims Committee unanimously backed Noem's banishment earlier this month, but the tribe's general council "has yet to adopt an official measure," the Leader explained. 

"Banishing me does nothing to solve this problem or to help those who are suffering horrific tragedies," Noem said in a statement. Instead, she insisted that cartel-related crime on tribal territory is ultimately the result of "Joe Biden and Kamala Harris's radical open border policies" which "have failed the American people and turned even South Dakota into a border state." Now banned from approximately 20% of the territory in her own state, where does Noem go from here?

What political dynamics brought us here?

Both Noem and her critics have accused one another of using the ongoing controversy over her remarks for their own political gain. The dynamic between Noem and South Dakota's tribal communities "have been strained since she took office in 2019," with several tribes claiming the governor has been "making decisions to boost [Donald] Trump's campaign efforts," The Hill said. Noem has been capitalizing on her "disingenuous nature toward Native Americans to further her federal political ambitions," The Rosebud Sioux Tribe said in a statement announcing their ban. The governor's actions amount to an "attack on Tribal sovereignty," the group added, citing not only her recent comments, but her "support for the XL Keystone Pipeline and penalties for protestors, her sending letters to then President Trump about the tribal checkpoints during COVID-19 and her support for the Department of Education removing portions of Native American history from social studies standards," Siouxland Proud said. 

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Conversely, Noem has expressed her hope that "tribal leadership will take the opportunity to work with me to be an example of how cooperation is better for all people rather than political attacks" in a statement to CNN. 

Is there a path to reconciliation? 

While Noem's now-blanket ban across South Dakota's tribal lands may seem extreme and absolute, there are signs that both the governor and the Native communities may be looking ahead toward a more cooperative future. During a meeting with Noem, the Flandreau Santee Sioux Tribe's leadership recommended the "Governor clarify her statements and issue an apology to all tribal nations for the misunderstanding," the Tribe told CNN. "Until such a time, the Executive Council and the people of the Flandreau Santee Sioux Tribe stand with our fellow nations." 

Several weeks before the vote to ban Noem, Flandreau Santee Sioux Communications Director Francis Wakeman expressed hope that his community and the Governor could work together. "We understand where [Noem is] coming from, but at the same time, [non-Indigenous politicians] kind of have to understand where Native people are coming from," Wakeman told The Daily Beast. "It's not been a good experience for any of us."

For her part, Noem has publicly not shied away from the controversial remarks that precipitated her banishments. She has, however, said it was "never my intent to cause offense by speaking truth to the real challenges that are being faced in some areas of Indian country," and looked to the Flandreau Santee Sioux Tribe for opportunities to "partner together in a way that can be an example for all" according to a readout of a meeting between her and the Tribal council provided to the Argus Leader.