Analyzing Native American and European Settler Perspectives on Buffalo Conservation

“The Buffalo was a part of us, his flesh and blood being absorbed by us until it became our own flesh and blood.”

John (Fire) Lame Deer, Oglala-Lame Deer Seeker of Visions, With Richard Erdoes, 1972

Students will become familiar with the history of the American buffalo extermination campaign that occurred in the late 1800s and the Native-led and European settler-led conservation efforts that followed. Students will watch three documentary video clips and answer thematic and content-based questions.

Students will examine and reflect on efforts to exterminate buffalo and the process of bringing them back, including now Native and European settler perspectives differed and how both group’s efforts were backed by federal policy. 

Learning Objective:

Students will aim to….

• Understand the sweeping effects of the extermination of the buffalo.
• Compare and contrast how Native Americans and European settlers viewed the buffalo.
• Explore the cultural value systems of Native Americans, specifically how Native Americans revered the American buffalo.
• Practice their research, analysis, and storytelling skills by creating media (video or written) about these conservation efforts.

About the Author:

Renee Sans Souci is an Umoⁿhoⁿ woman and practitioner of traditional healing with a degree in education from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. She combines her life experiences with a learning process that helps learners to engage in their own cultural identities and languages. Renee has been a Teaching Artist with the Lied Center for Performing Arts since 2009. She has provided keynotes speeches on the topic of Water and Environmental Science, has presented at conferences and workshops on topics related to Native science, the history of Indian education, Native languages, poetry, and sustainability. Renee was featured in the PBS American Masters Series, UNLADYLIKE 2020: Susan LaFlesche Picotte: The First American Indian Doctor. She is a Co-Leader for the Niskithe Prayer Camp and is a recipient of the UNL Institute of Ethnic Studies 2023 Leo Yankton Award for Indigenous Justice.