Political radicalism from the left is the exception in the Dakotas, it seems safe to say, but there were strong socialist movements in certain counties during the late 1800s, which Bill Pratt, a historian at the University of Nebraska-Omaha, has famously written about. Some parts of the old NFO and NFU were also inclined toward radicalism. Anyway, there does seem to be some new radical voices in South Dakota, a development which tracks certain national trends. In 1999, for example, when I attended the massive protests against the WTO in Seattle, I met a number of anarchists, a movement which is growing (see some stuff here) and would seem part of the political polarization of the country the commentators always talk about. Anyway, there is a blog in SD entitled "Tokala Resistance: Sowing Seeds of Revolt on the Dakota Prairie" which is part of this movement, as is the "Great Plains Anarchist Network." This week, the "Tokala Resistance" (a key leader is apparently "Stan," who often comments on Mt. Blogmore) was part of a state-wide "Day of Dissent" againt the nation's current foreign policy. Excerpt:
3/19-Day of Dissent Across South Dakota
It's inspiring to see our fairly revolutionary movements spread across the plains and swell in number. Few journalists (or Republicans, thank god) have even noticed, but we rebels are shaking things up like never before. In Vermillion, especially, the Community for Peace and Justice has quickly become the most influential and active student group at USD. Now the CPJ is sending organizers to other regional hotspots to get things going. Watch South Dakota in the next five years-the entire political landscape will be turned upside-down soon enough.
From the South Dakota Peace and Justice Center:
The President and his minions lie us into Iraq.
They lure our youth into the lethal, corrupting
kill-or-be-killed hell of war and occupation. They
won't rest till they screw the whole world and all it's
oil down tight under their imperial control. They
announce they will continue to devour all the youth
and treasure until the global war on terror (GWOT) is
won -- meaning, until all the people they infuriate
with their infuriating behavior (a.k.a. "terrorists)
cease being infuriated.WE're not making this up. This week both
Bush and Blair prepared us to accept occupation of
Iraq for a long, long, long time. Ditto for Afghanistan,
according to Joint Chiefs of Staff Chair General
Myers. In other words, PERPETUAL WAR!The US House, SD's lone US Rep. included, has
just voted to give the President his $80 billion+ war
supplemental -- with no end in sight. Don't just sit
there. March 19 is a day to signal Congress and
your fellow citizens a big, fat NO. Publicly refuse
to accept the lying, killing, and imperial conquest.
Bring friends to make the NO bigger.
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