A nationwide tribute to honor those who have died during the COVID-19 pandemic began at 3:30pm Billings time today (Tuesday 1/19), and the illuminated teepees on Sacrifice Cliff will be part of this memorial tonight.
According to a press release from the Rocky Mountain Tribal Leaders Council (RMTLC), the teepees will light up from dusk to dawn for the National Moment of Unity and Remembrance, part of the Inauguration ceremonies for Joe Biden and Kamala Harris.
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The lighting of the teepees on Sacrifice Cliff at Swords Park will honor those lost to the coronavirus and those lost to another pandemic brought almost two centuries ago to our Native lands, according to the press release.
Yellowstone Public Radio
Teepee erected by Indigenous groups to memorialize those who ve died from COVID-19 and look forward to a new chapter for the country under the Biden Administration.
The evening before President-elect Joe Biden’s inauguration, a collective of Indigenous organizations erected a teepee near Sacrifice Cliffs in Billings.
As the sun set Tuesday evening, Bill Snell, executive director of the Rocky Mountain Tribal Leaders Council and president of the Pretty Shield Foundation, explained the teepee serves as a memorial for those who’ve died from COVID-19 and as a symbol of hope as the United States transitions to a new chapter under the Biden administration.
Montana tribes to participate in national moment of unity by lighting teepee in Billings Nora Mabie, Great Falls Tribune
Montana tribes will participate in a national moment of unity and memorial for COVID-19 victims on Tuesday at 3 p.m. by illuminating a teepee on Sacrifice Cliff in Billings.
The teepee will be illuminated through Tuesday evening.
The national memorial, which will kick off in Washington, D.C. as part of President-elect Joe Biden s inauguration, will feature the lighting of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool and the illumination of buildings in cities nationwide. The ceremony aims to honor those lost to COVID-19 while serving as a symbol of hope for the future.