Pine Ridge, SD – You are on Lakota land. That much is for sure as you enter the Pine Ridge, the largest town in the Oglala Lakota reservation. Painted buildings, honoring the American Indian Movement which fought for tribal sovereignty in the 1970s, line the main road. “We’re not Indians and we’re not Native Americans. We’re older than both concepts. We’re the people. We’re the human beings.” Food isn’t the first thing you think of as you enter; much like other small towns in South Dakota, mostly chain fast food restaurants dot the freeway running through the reservation.
Posters that detail the traditional food of the Lakota people are pasted around town: describing a diet of wild turnips, chokecherries, wild strawberries, dried corn, buffalo, and wild rice. However, the most popular foods in Pine Ridge bear little resemblance to this; rather they are foods born out of necessity. Bean burritos, turnovers filled with ground beef and cheese, and stews resembling a Mexican birria are the most common items sold out of trucks, cars, and makeshift food stands in an empty parking lot, dubbed the “Indian mall” by locals.
A few blocks away is a government building where the Food Distribution Network, where commodities, or “commods” are dispensed. In a commods box today, one can get fresh vegetables, meat, rice, tortillas, and the most prized item, blocks of sharp cheddar cheese. The commodities program was started in the 1970s as an addition to the Food Stamp Act, which allowed individuals and families with lower incomes to purchase food at grocery stores. Since most Native Americans living on reservations had little access to grocery stores, commods were often shelf stable canned ingredients that could be transported and easily distributed to residents in rural counties, such as spam, coffee, sugar, and lard. In recent years, sustainably sourced fresh ingredients have been more often included among the items, but the legacy of the previous rations carries over in the most common foods found on the reservation. The most classic example of this is the “Indian taco”, a deep-fried bread covered in ground meat, lettuce, tomatoes, and cheese that is said to have originated with ingredients the Navajo people received from the US government, first as rations during their removal from their native lands and later through the commods system.
Countless words have been written about the injustices the Lakota people in Pine Ridge have faced, from broken treaties to the economic deprivation, leading to high rates of chronic disease and substance use. Most of the buildings once holding businesses lie abandoned, and the only movement on cold days on the streets are packs of stray dogs running along through the overgrown sidewalks. There is, however, one business that has remained since 2005 despite the economic difficulties.
Belva Thunder Hawk wakes up at 2 am everyday to start baking. There are muffins, cookies, and scones to make which will invariably run out every day. When I walk in many hours later, giant cookies filled with chocolate chips, oatmeal, and coconut flakes sit neatly wrapped on the counter, at Higher Ground Coffee. Thunder Hawk started this small cafe in 2005, and it is now one of the only independent businesses remaining in Pine Ridge.
The building was originally a parsonage in poor shape. Thunder Hawk, a teacher by trade, used to sell coffee and pastries out of the church next door, but dreamed of turning it into something bigger. “I was never a chef, but I loved to bake,” she said. She slowly remodeled the building and started selling coffee along with other refreshments. Due to popular demand, savory breakfast foods, and then lunch were added. The drink menu is still ever expanding; fruit and protein smoothies along with Mocha Frappuccinos more likely to be seen in a trendy Brooklyn cafe bodega than a remote South Dakota town are on the menu. Thunder Hawk makes sure to highlight the Wojiapi smoothie, a mixture of chokecherries, blueberries, and cranberries normally found in Native cuisines in the form of a concentrated jam. Higher Ground’s food offerings resemble the current cuisine of Pine Ridge; turkey sandwiches, sloppy joes, pizza casseroles, and the most popular item, the Bronco burrito, a flour tortilla filled with potatoes, meat, eggs, and cheese.
Today, business moves swiftly as a steady line of customers filter through the tiny cafe that at times feels like a second home. Polaroids of family members and patrons line the walls, along with a small library and community notice board for events. “I keep getting offers to expand,” Thunder Hawk says, but she is fighting hard to stay in their current space. “We have so much history here.” One of her major challenges is retaining and training staff who often have chaotic home lives, or those that want to leave the reservation for the closest city. “I just want to show people it’s possible to follow your dreams right here in town,” Thunderhawk says, as she wipes the table. Simply existing as a cafe is an act of defiance in Pine Ridge, and that may be enough. While the future may have difficulties, one thing is certain., Belva Thunderhawk and the Lakota people will continue to be here.
