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1890 are buried.
• But James Czywczynski told The Associated Press that he is giving the Oglala Sioux Tribe until May 1 to make an offer on the40-acre parcel before he opens it up to outside buyers. Czywczynski would not give details on the groups, nor what they intend to do with the land, but said they are willing to pay the full $3.9 million asking price.
• "I cannot do anything until May 1 because I have allowed the Oglala Sioux Tribe and the Wounded Knee Survivors Association the opportunity to purchase this property first because that is what I and my family would like to see it in their hands. Otherwise we're going to advertise it nationally and internationally and get the best price we can," said Czywczynski, whose family has owned the land since 1968.
• The Wounded Knee National Historic landmark comprises 870 acres.
• Along with its proximity to the burial grounds, the land includes the site of a former trading post burned down during the 1973 Wounded Knee uprising, in which hundreds of American Indian Movement protesters occupied the town built at the site of the 1890 massacre. The 71-day standoff that left two tribal members dead and a federal agent seriously wounded is credited with raising awareness about Native American struggles and giving rise to a wider protest movement that lasted the rest of the decade.
• Czywczynski, who also is trying to sell another 40-acre piece of nearby land to the tribe for $1 million, said he hopes the tribe sees the value the land could add in terms of jobs and economic development to the impoverished reservation. Some tribal members think the land around the massacre site should be developed into a tourist attraction while others are adamantly opposed to it.
• Wounded Knee tribal council member Kevin Yellow Bird Steele said the tribe has money to purchase the land but believes the asking price is too high. The land has been appraised at less than $7,000.
• Paying $3.9 million for the land would "detrimentally affect the rest of the land base around there," Yellow bird Steele said. "If they did buy it for that price, then all the other land value would go up and that's what they don't want to do right now."
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