AMERICAN INDIAN MOVEMENT GRAND GOVERNING COUNCIL

MINISTRY FOR INFORMATION
P.O. Box 17238
Minneapolis MN 55417
612/ 721-3914
Email: aimggc@worldnet.att.net
Web Address: www.aimovement.org

Nowacumig-Dennis Banks, co-founder of the American Indian Movement joins the ancestors at age 80 April 12, 1937 - October 29, 2017 October 29, 2017 Our father Dennis J. Banks started his journey to the spirit world at 10:10 pm on October 29, 2017. As he took his last breaths, Minoh sang him four songs for his journey. All the family who were present prayed over him and said our individual goodbyes. Then we proudly sang him the AIM song as his final send off. Our father will be laid to rest in his home community of Leech Lake, MN. Presiding over traditional services will be Terry Nelson. We welcome all who would like to pay respects. As soon as arrangements are finalized, we will post details. Still Humbly Yours, The children and grandchildren of Nowacumig Dennis J. Banks Wake and Funeral Services Wednesday, November 1 at 12:00 pm Wake Service Minneapolis American Indian Center 1530 E. Franklin Ave Minneapolis, MN 55404 Thursday, November 2 at 2:00 pm Wake Service Battle Point Community Center 10051 Battle Point Trail NW Federal Dam, Minnesota 56484 Friday, November 3 at 12:00 pm Wake Service Battle Point Community Center 10051 Battle Point Trail NW Federal Dam, Minnesota 56641 Saturday, November 4 at 10:00 am Battle Point Community Center Federal Dam, Minnesota Traditional Burial Bug-O-Nay-Ge-Shig Cemetery at Battle Point on the Leech Lake Reservation "For 30 years, I was AIM's field director. People always said that wherever AIM was, there was trouble. That wasn't true. AIM went to where the trouble was. We were called. The worst field case was on a Navajo reservation. I got a call from Larry Anderson who said that there had been some brutal killings on a Navajo reservation. I had the resources to fly there. It was a grizzly murder. Larry started organizing a march. As it turned out, there was a cult, white Aryan guys. Their initiation was to kill a Navajo. They killed five of them. That was the worst place we were. I was a point person. There will be a thousand books written about the American Indian Movement and hundreds of personal stories. If our stories can fill the households and if they can be told around every fire, then we will surely have implanted a deep sense of responsibility in our people. When we look back at the 60s and 70s, history will reveal that AIM had more to do with changing the landscape than any other organization. That's going to be our legacy. We weren't architects, we weren't physicians, we were dog soldiers, and that was our job, to bring about that change, so that people could become architects, could become engineers, could become lawyers, could become great distance runners, and that they'd have rights and the right to exercise them."