Ellen Moves Camp

Ellen Moves Camp (1931 – 2008) grew up in the community of Wanblee on Pine Ridge reservation. She had lost family members in the 1890 Wounded Knee massacre, in which nearly 300 Lakota people were murdered by soldiers of the United States Army. Moves Camp worked as a community health representative, and was a founding member of the Oglala Civil Rights Organization (OSCRO).

Ellen Moves Camp was one of many OSCRO women who spoke at the Calico meetings, urging AIM leaders to act and inspiring others to join their cause. One AIM member said of that meeting: “The decision to take Wounded Knee came when Ellen Moves Camp pointed at us and said, ‘What are you men going to do about it?’ If the women hadn’t done that we’d still be meeting at Calico.” Inside Wounded Knee, Moves Camp oversaw much of the day-to-day running of the camp, coordinating food provisions across the four kitchens, and ensuring that everyone got a warm meal. Many people traveled from across the U.S. to Wounded Knee to lend support. Ellen Moves Camp was often the one to greet these volunteers and set them to work. She also played an important part in the negotiations between the Independent Oglala Nation and U.S. government officials inside Wounded Knee.