The Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act of 1975 gave tribal governments more authority over programs that affected their communities.

The American Indian Religious Freedom Act of 1978 affirmed the right of Indigenous people to practice their traditional religions.

NAGPRA in 1990 addressed the return of human remains and cultural items.

These legislative changes did not resolve the underlying inequalities, but they created a legal framework within which Indigenous communities could assert rights more effectively.

The tribal government at Pine Ridge gained more authority over what happened on the reservation.

In this changed legal context, the question of the burial mystery has different dimensions than it had in 1877 or in 1900 or even in 1950.