In indigenous societies, to be a leader meant that, materially, you were always going to be poor . . .

"In indigenous societies, to be a leader meant that, materially, you were always going to be poor. This is because you had to make sure everyone else in the community was taken care of. So being a leader was avoided by many men. Leaders had to be chosen, designated, by the Elder Women. So a leader among the men did not rise to the position out of personal ambition, greed for power, or personal insecurities, trying to prove something. These are all characteristics of unfit leaders, which are common today in patriarchal society."

Russell Means
Oglala Lakota

Photos: Badlands National Park, SD, May 16, 2015