South Dakota's Mount Rushmore Fireworks Celebration 2020 was a fireworks celebration at
Mount Rushmore
Mount Rushmore National Memorial is a national memorial centered on a colossal sculpture carved into the granite face of Mount Rushmore (Lakota: ''Tȟuŋkášila Šákpe'', or Six Grandfathers) in the Black Hills near Keystone, South Dakot ...
held on July 3, 2020, the day before
Independence Day. It was notable for featuring the first and only use of fireworks at the site since 2008 and for being held amid the ongoing
COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...
.
President
Donald Trump
Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021.
Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of P ...
spoke at the event, with other politicians and notable names including
South Dakota
South Dakota (; Sioux: , ) is a U.S. state in the North Central region of the United States. It is also part of the Great Plains. South Dakota is named after the Lakota and Dakota Sioux Native American tribes, who comprise a large porti ...
Governor
Kristi Noem
Kristi Lynn Noem (; née Arnold; born November 30, 1971) is an American politician serving as the 33rd governor of South Dakota since 2019. A member of the Republican Party, she was the U.S. representative for from 2011 to 2019 and a member ...
, Host of ''
Entertainment Tonight''
Mary Hart
Mary Hart (born Mary Johanna Harum; November 8, 1950) is an American television personality and actress. She was the long-running host (1982–2011) of the syndicated gossip and entertainment round-up television program '' Entertainment Tonight' ...
,
First Lady Melania Trump
Melania Trump ( ; born Melanija Knavs , Germanized as Melania Knauss ; born April 26, 1970) is a Slovene-American former model and businesswoman who served as First Lady of the United States from 2017 to 2021 as the wife of 45th president Do ...
and Trump's eldest son
Donald Trump Jr
Donald John Trump Jr. (born December 31, 1977) is an American political activist, businessman, author, and former television presenter. He is the eldest child of Donald Trump, 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021, and his firs ...
. in attendance.
Background
Fireworks displays were regularly held at Mount Rushmore between 1998 and 2009. In 2010, the
National Park Service
The National Park Service (NPS) is an agency of the United States federal government within the U.S. Department of the Interior that manages all national parks, most national monuments, and other natural, historical, and recreational propert ...
stopped fireworks displays because of concerns about wildfires and potential contamination of drinking water. Though plans for it had been proposed, in an effort to reduce endangering the relationships with the Lakota, as well as reduce the risk of wildfire, there will not be a Fourth of July fireworks event in 2022.
Speeches
The event included remarks by Mary Hart and Governor Noem.
Trump's remarks at the event covered his deploying of law enforcement to protect monuments, repeatedly expressed his support for
God
In monotheistic thought, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator, and principal object of faith. Swinburne, R.G. "God" in Honderich, Ted. (ed)''The Oxford Companion to Philosophy'', Oxford University Press, 1995. God is typically ...
, largely ignored the ongoing
COVID-19 pandemic in the United States, and included a reiteration to build the
border wall
A border barrier is a separation barrier that runs along or near an international border. Such barriers are typically constructed for border control purposes such as curbing illegal immigration, human trafficking, and smuggling. Some such barr ...
. The speech, as described by Matthew Rowley, is all about 'the power of positive history'—by focusing on what made America great, Americans will be moved to greatness; by focusing on failure, Americans will become harsh, judgmental and intolerant. Although the George Floyd protests form the backdrop to Trump's words, the President nowhere mentions police brutality. 'In other words', writes Rowley, Trump seems to argue that 'America is great because it removed the knee from the slave's neck, not wicked because it knelt over the slave for centuries'. Then-U.S. president Trump had been known to share an affinity with Mount Rushmore, even telling South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem that it is a dream of his to have his own face carved onto the monument. In an article done by Steven Groves he reveals that Trump “joked at a campaign rally about getting enshrined alongside George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt and Abraham Lincoln. And while it was Noem, a Republican, who pushed for a return of fireworks on the eve of Independence Day, Trump committed to visiting South Dakota for the celebration”.
The Lakota Nation and Mount Rushmore
The original inhabitants of the
Black Hills
The Black Hills ( lkt, Ȟe Sápa; chy, Moʼȯhta-voʼhonáaeva; hid, awaxaawi shiibisha) is an isolated mountain range rising from the Great Plains of North America in western South Dakota and extending into Wyoming, United States. Black ...
were the Lakota people. As stated in an article by author Amy McKeever, “For Lakota, Cheyenne, and Arapaho communities, the region was not only spiritually important, it was also where tribes gathered food and plants they used in building and medicine”.
The Lakota also referred to the Black Hills as Paha Sapa (Black Hills) or He Sapa (Black Mountains). Some popular Lakota tribe members are Crazy Horse and Sitting Bull.
According to author Annette McGivney, decades before the construction of Mount Rushmore, "Lt. Col George Armstrong Custer led a survey into the Black Hills.”
The convoy foraged through the Black Hills without the prior permission of the tribes. Custer brought in these convoys to scavenge the hills for resources.
This broke treaties the government had with the tribes; however, the US constitution allowed gold prospectors to settle in the Black Hills as well as the area around.
Nicholas Black Elk, a member of the Oglala tribe, saw patterns of elimination and charged that the government was attempting to wipe out Lakota culture.
In the 1870s, Americans argued the Lakota had never lived in the Black Hills at all. Later, in the 1900s the Lakota began to seek compensation for their relocation and surrender of the hills; however, the United States denied their right to compensation.
The members of the Sioux Nation surrendered their territory and were then relocated onto reservations. Following the relocation, the construction of Mount Rushmore began on the mountain the Lakota referred to as “Tunkasila Sakpe”, which translates to Six Grandfathers.
Tunkasila Sakpe was a granite bluff that remained untouched until construction began.
In recent decades, the Lakota demanded their land be returned, as they argue that they have inhabited the Black Hills for centuries, if not millennia.
Construction of Mount Rushmore began in 1927. Before the construction, Doane Robinson saw Six Grandfathers as an opportunity to increase tourism in the Black Hills. Robinson hired Gutzon Borglum to create a sculpture that honored “the West’s greatest heroes, both Native Americans, and pioneers”. Borglum proposed to Robinson that they use the faces of past U.S. presidents.
The Lakota viewed Mount Rushmore as a symbol of United States dominance.
Environmental concerns
In an effort to bring awareness to the concern with the event, a report was put out by The National Park Service. Bill Gabbert, an editor at Wildifre Today and Fire Aviation, stated that “fireworks were used at Mount Rushmore on July 3 or 4 from 1998 to 2009, except for 2002 when it was canceled due to the danger of the pyrotechnic display starting a wildfire. During those 11 events 20 documented wildfires were ignited by the fireworks during the middle of the fire season”. Many of these firefighters were placed around the park in order to prevent any larger blazes. The Black Hills is filled with thousands of acres of forest, causing much concern". Gabbert further states concerns regarding the “trash that can never be completely picked up. Left on the sculpture and in the forest are unexploded shells, wadding, plastic, ash, pieces of devices, and paper”. On account of the terrain, cleanup of the pyrotechnic devices is very difficult to maintain. Joe Lowe, who served as fire chief for South Dakota’s Division of Wildland Fire from 2001 to 2012, stated that the embers from pyrotechnics can ignite the dry terrain surrounding the memorial site, which is why his team was prepared to extinguish potential fires. Firefighters called in crews from other states to help a few days prior to the firework event, as a blaze consumed approximately 150 acres about 6 miles south of Mount Rushmore.
Protest
Inspired by the Civil Rights Movement, many individuals sought out justice for the Lakota. In 1970, many activists belonging to a group known as the United Native Americans, arrived at the monument to demand that the Black Hills be returned to the Lakota. The activists set up camp on top of the memorial for several months, and after disassembling returned the next summer. Despite their return, their protests ended in their arrests. After many years of protest, the debate surrounding the monument reached the Supreme Court. In the case United States v. Sioux Nation of Indians (1980), it was ruled that the Black Hills belong to the Lakota. As compensation for the damages of the land, the Lakota were offered $17.1 million; however, the nation rejected the offer in order to continue to uphold the fight for the return of their land.
On the day of the firework celebration, NDN Collective organized a protest that blocked the road to the park, stating individuals were trespassing on sovereign lands of the Great Sioux Nation.
A protest of about 200 people blocked the road to the park. Indigenous activists assembled on the highway, using cars and vans as barriers, which blocked the road for nearly three hours. In response, law enforcement officers and members of the South Dakota Air and Army National Guard were called in, leading to a skirmish between protestors and law enforcement.
Some activists wore eagle feathers, beat drums and faced off with a line of air national guardsmen who were dressed in riot gear. No physical violence broke out but according to the county sheriff their actions were criminal, resulting in the arrest of 21 activists who faced charges of misdemeanors.
Videos of the protest went viral, as did the “#
landback” hashtag and with NDN collective's demands that the
Black Hills
The Black Hills ( lkt, Ȟe Sápa; chy, Moʼȯhta-voʼhonáaeva; hid, awaxaawi shiibisha) is an isolated mountain range rising from the Great Plains of North America in western South Dakota and extending into Wyoming, United States. Black ...
be returned to the
Lakota people and Mount Rushmore closed. Protesters described Mount Rushmore as “an international symbol of
white supremacy
White supremacy or white supremacism is the belief that white people are superior to those of other races and thus should dominate them. The belief favors the maintenance and defense of any power and privilege held by white people. White s ...
." The assembly was declared unlawful by the county sheriff and 20 activists were arrested.
After gaining national attention, Nick Tilsen, NDN Collective President and CEO, had all charges against him dropped. This followed in suit to all other Land Defenders arrested on July 3 who had also had their charges dismissed, much in part through the efforts of many social activists. Tens of thousands of advocates raised money for bail funds through donations. By way of petitions, social media movements, as well as news coverage, enough publicity was found to put pressure on the courts to liberate the Land Defenders. Though dismissed from his prison sentence, Tilsen was obligated to attend a diversion program in lieu of all but one of the many charges made against him.
Tilsen has discussed his agenda to turn Mount Rushmore back to the tribes. According to an article done by Steven Groves, “prosecutors say that part of the program is admitting wrongdoing and ensuring that offenses don't happen again; however, Tilsen told the Associated Press he is not done pressing for changes to the monument and the Black Hills”.
“Wherever you go to connect to God, that’s what the Black Hills are to the Lakota,” said Nick Tilsen, president of NDN Collective. The area, known as Paha Sapa — “the heart of everything that is” is sacred to the
Lakota people. Nick Tilsen was charged with a combination of misdemeanors and felonies that could have led to 17 years in prison.
Most charges were later dropped.
Effects of the COVID-19 pandemic
The event had a large crowd in attendance who did not
social distance
In sociology, social distance describes the distance between individuals or social groups in society, including dimensions such as social class, race/ethnicity, gender or sexuality. Members of different groups mix less than members of the same g ...
and were not required to wear masks, despite recommendations to do so by the
Center for Disease Control and Prevention
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is the national public health agency of the United States. It is a United States federal agency, under the Department of Health and Human Services, and is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgi ...
and other science experts, due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. However, masks were handed out and attendees were given temperature screenings (despite
COVID-19 being able to be spread by asymptomatic individuals). Donald Trump Jr.'s girlfriend
Kimberly Guilfoyle
Kimberly Ann Guilfoyle ( ; born March 9, 1969) is an American television news personality and former prosecuting attorney in San Francisco. A Republican, she became an advisor to the 45th President of the United States, Donald Trump.
Guilfoyle ...
was also in attendance despite testing positive for the virus the same day.
See also
*
National Garden of American Heroes
The National Garden of American Heroes was a sculpture garden honoring "great figures of America's history" that was proposed by President Donald Trump in executive orders on July 3, 2020, and January 18, 2021. Trump first announced the idea at a ...
*
2020 Salute to America
The 2020 Salute to America was an event with flyovers and fireworks arranged by the Trump administration held on Independence Day, July 4, 2020. It was the second event of its kind; the first was held a year prior, in 2019. The 2020 event was e ...
*
COVID-19 pandemic in South Dakota
The COVID-19 pandemic in South Dakota is an ongoing viral pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), a novel infectious disease caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The state of South Dakota reported its f ...
References
External links
President Trump's Remarks at Mt. Rushmore "Salute America" Event at c-span.orgRemarks by President Trump at South Dakota’s 2020 Mount Rushmore Fireworks Celebration at whitehouse.gov{{Presidency of Donald Trump
July 2020 events in the United States
Mount Rushmore
Presidency of Donald Trump
Trump administration controversies
Fireworks in the United States