RAPID CITY, S.D. – A Rapid City-based Indigenous advocacy organization has released a statement sharply criticizing the upcoming 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, calling the national celebration a reflection of historical hypocrisy.

NDN Collective, which is headquartered in Rapid City, released the statement ahead of the national milestone, pointing out the language used in the foundational U.S. document and the country’s history of broken treaties.

“We, the first people of this land, do not have to look far to spot the hypocrisy of celebrating a document that calls our ancestors ‘Merciless Indian Savages,'” the NDN Collective statement reads. “At the start of this nation, the government ratified over 350 treaties with Native Nations – and then proceeded to break every single one of them. Just as it was clear to our ancestors, it remains clear to us now: this colonial experiment has failed at building anything resembling a true democracy.”

The Rapid City organization also called for solidarity and a deeper reckoning with the nation’s history regarding both Indigenous peoples and Black Americans.

“We honor the dreams of those who stewarded this land into abundance long before the arrival of colonists,” the statement continues. “We seek shared healing and liberation with our Black kin, whose forced labor then enriched the pocketbooks of the wealthy white men. If America continues to refuse to reckon with its own story – a country built on genocide, land theft, and slavery – it is doomed to repeat itself.”

NDN Collective concluded its message by urging people to reflect on the past two and a half centuries and to consider their own roles moving forward.

“Today, we encourage all our relatives to reflect on the reality of the past 250 years and see how the true terrorists on this land have always been the architects, drivers, and beneficiaries of this colonial project, not we, the people,” the statement reads. “We invite you to commit to fighting for a future where all humans and Mother Earth are respected. Ask yourself: What is my role in this resurgence? How long am I going to let other people decide the future for my children? Are we not warriors?”