Richard Wilson, the Oglala Sioux tribal president who was a
principal target of dissident Indians who occupied Wounded Knee,
S.D., for 71 days in 1973, died of complications from an
enlarged heart and kidney failure Thursday at a hospital in
Rapid City. He was 55 years old. The occupation of Wounded Knee,
the historic village within the Pine Ridge Reservation, resulted
in gunfights between the dissidents and Federal forces, with
dozens of injuries and two Indians' deaths. The dissidents
surrendered after the Government had agreed to pull back armored
personnel carriers from roadblocks that had been set up in
response to the siege. It was the dissidents' perception of Mr.
Wilson's leadership as head of the Oglala Sioux Tribal Council,
as well as their view of the Federal Government's Indian
policies, that led to the occupation. The 300 occupiers charged
that he was dictatorial and corrupt and that Mr. Wilson's
administration was too cozy with the Government. Deep Tribal
Division Central to the standoff were de