Aid Lakota Sundance: A Prayerful Resistance

Dear Friends,

As many of you know, last summer I journeyed to Rosebud Reservation in South Dakota to support a traditional Lakota Sundance — a four-day ceremony of profound prayer, sacrifice, and renewal held for the healing of ALL people and the land.

Thanks to your generous support, we raised $2,300, which went directly toward food, supplies, and offerings to the ceremonial leaders — including Chief Norman Running, whose presence and support continue to ripple through all who were there and through his broader community.

The impact of our generosity was real. We were able to nourish the dancers, honor the altar, and meet vital needs with dignity and care.

This July, I return again to support this sacred ceremony — and I write with a heartfelt ask for your support.

This year, our goal is to raise $5,000, and the need is even more urgent.

The weight of systemic oppression on Native communities has only intensified under the current U.S. administration. Ceremonial life persists despite the obstacles — not because it is easy, but because it is essential. These dances are prayers for all people, the waters, and for the future of this planet. They are acts of resistance, resilience, and profound love.

Life on the reservation is beyond challenging. John Fire Lame Deer, a Lakota Medicine man from Rosebud born in 1903, described reservation living as fourth world, not third world because its poverty and oppression is created and sustained by the surrounding wealth and infrastructure of the US.

Every dollar you offer will help cover:

If you've ever felt touched by my offerings, by my healing ways, I invite you to give back generously to the deep well I drink from. The Lakota people, the Running family, their ceremonies, their generosity of spirit — this is where I go to pray, to listen, to remember what’s true.

This is where I draw from to be able to support my community.

This is the practice reciprocity.

And this is where I will be spending my money and taking time off of work to give back and practice being in right relationship with a community that never charges for ceremony but only asks us to give what we can.

I also welcome your prayers — for your life, your family, your path. If there's something you'd like me to carry to the altar of this Sundance ceremony, you can reply to this email or send a note privately. I will bring your prayers with reverence and care.

I leave for the dance on July 14.

With gratitude,

Alexander