In the Spirit of Crazy Horse
In the Spirit of Crazy Horse is a book by
Synopsis
The book portrays a politically violent period on the Lakota Nation's
Whatever the nature and degree of his participation at Oglala, the ruthless persecution of Leonard Peltier had less to do with his own actions than with underlying issues of history, racism, and economics, in particular, Indian sovereignty claims and growing opposition to massive energy development on treaty lands and dwindling reservations.
— op.cit., page xx
Reception
The book was well received critically.[1][2] Many scholars praised Matthiessen's veracity and accuracy,[1] and the author's support for Leonard Peltier, AIM, and the Lakota people was acknowledged and appreciated by those parties.
The book was finally published in paperback in 1992 after lawsuits alleging
Reception was not universally positive. In a review for the
Lawsuits
After publication of the book, two plaintiffs filed libel suits against Viking Press. Bill Janklow, the former Republican governor of South Dakota, filed a $24 million lawsuit in South Dakota. He also sued three booksellers in South Dakota who had sold hardcover copies of the book. This case was watched because of its repressive aspects related to bookselling.
Janklow's suit was based upon one paragraph in the book which has statements by AIM leader
Janklow filed a separate lawsuit against
Viking Press filed a countersuit against Janklow in the Southern District of New York, which in part alleged that Janklow had interfered with the company's constitutional rights to publish and distribute the book.[4] A South Dakota circuit court ruled that the book was not defamatory and terminated Janklow's lawsuit in 1984. Upon Janklow's appeal of the ruling, the South Dakota State Supreme Court reinstated the case in 1985.
David Price, an FBI agent who was at the Wounded Knee incident, filed two identical lawsuits against Viking: one in South Dakota state court (Price v. Viking Press, Inc., Civ. No. 84-448) and an identical suit (Price v. Viking Press, Inc., 625 F. Supp. 641) in federal court, seeking $25 million in United States District Court for the District of South Dakota. The case was transferred to a federal court in Minnesota.
The lawyers representing both Matthiessen and Viking Press in the federal suit in Minnesota were noted First Amendment lawyer Martin Garbus of Frankfurt, Garbus, Klein & Selz, New York City, with Barbara F.L. Penn, St. Paul, Minnesota.
In the Minnesota case, Federal District Court Judge
References
- ^ Salon. Retrieved June 23, 2020.
- ^ "Book Review: In the Spirit of Crazy Horse". Kirkus Reviews. March 1, 1982. Retrieved June 23, 2020.
- ^ a b "The Martyrdom of Leonard Peltier". July 2, 1995.
- ^ a b c d Edwin McDowell, "Court Battle Over Book: Viking and a Governor," The New York Times, 28 May 1983. *
- ^ "Janklow Law Firm - Bill Janklow".
- ^ Herbert Mitgang, "Crazy Horse Author Is Upheld in Libel Case" The New York Times, 16 January 1988. *