Members of the Kalpulli Yaocenoxtli and other activists look on during a protest outside of the White House to urge
President Biden to grant Indigenous activist Leonard Peltier clemency. Photo: Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images
President Biden commuted the life sentence of indigenous activist Leonard Peltier, who was convicted in the 1975 killings of two FBI agents in a case long disputed by Native American advocates.
Why it matters: Native American and American Indian Movement (AIM) activists for decades sought a pardon or commuted sentence for Peltier, who has drawn celebrities like Robert Redford, Kris Kristofferson and the late Archbishop Desmond Tutu to his cause.
- Peltier will now transition to home confinement, AP reported.
- Two FBI agents were killed during a shootout that allegedly involved 40 AIM activists.
- A jury found Peltier guilty, but witnesses later said the FBI forced them to testify against him.
Leonard Peltier, American Indian Movement leader, is led across Okalla prison exercise yard to a waiting helicopter in 1976. Photo: Bettmann via Getty Images
The intrigue: The half-century fight to free Peltier has sparked countless movies, songs, art and poetry.
- Free Peltier posters have been a mainstay at powwows and other Indigenous gatherings.
- "This last-second, disgraceful act by then-President Biden, which does not change Peltier's guilt but does release him from prison, is cowardly and lacks accountability," she said.
- His supporters say he has diabetes, high blood pressure and a heart condition.
- "It took nearly 50 years to acknowledge the injustice of Leonard Peltier's conviction and continued incarceration, but with the President's act of mercy, Leonard can finally return to his reservation and live out his remaining days."
