Devil's Tower Essay

The main topic of discussion in my topic is the rights to the land surrounding and the Devil’s Tower itself. The Devil’s Tower is a monstrous rock formation that seemingly comes out of nowhere in the middle of a forest, and is said to have spiritual value to the native tribes that live in the surrounding areas. There are many tribes, such as the Arapaho, Cheyenne, Crow, Kiowa, Lakota, Sioux, etc.,(Hanson) that claim the exclusive rights to the use of the land for ceremonial purposes, as well as the public claim it for their own recreational hiking and climbing purposes. The theory that the land is exclusive to the native american tribes is derived from its spiritual traits that date back hundreds of years(Hanson), and the theory that it should …show more content…
It was learned that there are two groups of people fighting for the rights to enjoy the land around it, one is the Native Americans who want the land for ceremonial purposes and do not want any interference or interruption from people who are just using the monument for recreational and climbing purposes. The other group is the recreational hikers and climbers as stated above. Most would feel as if the land has a better use for those Native American tribes because they have an actual spiritual and ceremonial value to the land, as opposed to just using it for entertainment purposes. Frankly, the fact that it is even up for debate is a little ridiculous, there is no real justification for keeping it open to the public so people can have their fun happy family weekends on a sacred monument. I would recommend to people that they go sign petitions or things of that nature in effort to keep this land in the hands of its rightful owner, the Native American tribes that have been using it ceremonially for centuries. We as Americans have done enough damage to the Native American society, and I believe the least we can do is give this sacred, small piece of land back to them once and for