Discovery Channel - How the West Was Lost (DC) (1995) Part 9 Let them Eat Grass

Witness the tragic fall of the great Indian nations. Share the tales of the “conquering” of the American West from the Native American perspective. How The West Was Lost is a series about the westward expansion of colonialists across the North American continent during the latter half of the 19th Century from the experience and point of of view of the Native American peoples. It is the story of how mutual misunderstanding, incomprehension and differing viewpoints contributed to bring into conflict an expanding nation and the land's indigenous population. Each episode examines a separate tribe or battle and features interviews with descendants of legendary Native American warriors.

Part 9 Let them Eat Grass

The Dakotas (“friend”) thrived in what is today Minnesota until American settlers began to convert the area to farmland. By the 1830s droves of settlers had moved into the Minnesota River Valley. The Dakotas, who the whites called Sioux (“enemy”), tried to live peacefully with the settlers, but by 1851 both groups knew it wasn't working. The settlers persuaded the Dakotas to move to a reservation. Their promises of food and amenities for the Dakotas were not kept and after 10 years of broken promises the Dakotas were starving. Bloodshed was inevitable when a trader told the Dakotas they could eat their own grass. Led by Chief Little Crow, the Dakotas embarked on a tragic war. .

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