South Dakota hotel owner sparked fury after banning Native Americans from her property following a shooting.
Connie Ure, who owns the Grand Gateway Hotel in Rapid City, issued an executive order on Facebook Sunday following a non-fatal shooting on Saturday that she erroneously claimed resulted in death.
Ure, 76, wrote under Mayor Steve Allender’s Facebook post: “Due to the murder that took place at the Grand Gateway Hotel on March 19, 2022 … we will no longer allow Native Americans on the grounds or in the Cheers sports bar.” Natives kill natives. Ranchers and travelers will receive a special fee of $59.00 per night.”
Ure also claimed that Allender and the city’s police department were funded by “dark money” and claimed that she could not tell “who is a good native and who is a bad native”. Her decree broke the law, and her son Nick has since said that his mom was talking inappropriately and that there was no such rule.
Allender himself subsequently shared a screenshot of her remarks and denounced them as bigoted and wrong, according to the Rapid City Journal.
Mayor Allender told Rapid City Journal he couldn’t keep quiet about Ure’s comments after reading them.
Connie Ure, owner of the Grand Gateway Hotel in Rapid City, South Dakota, said on Facebook Sunday that she cannot “allow Native Americans into our business, including Cheers” and that she cannot understand the difference between “who bad native or good native” following a near-fatal shooting at her hotel early Saturday morning between two men
Ure also offers a discount to non-Native Americans to stay in her business. Pictured: Ure posing in an undated photo posted to her Facebook profile in 2014.
Rapid City Mayor Steve Allender shared Ure’s tweets on Twitter on Monday and said her views do not “represent the values of the community” after the hotel owner blamed him for the city’s rise in crime.
“I just felt like I couldn’t keep quiet and pretend like it was just a harmless expression of frustration,” he said during an interview on Monday. “This is an attack not only on the 12 percent of Rapid Citians who are Native Americans, but on the majority of Native Americans across the country. So I sent a tweet during today’s trip as a minimal token of support for the Native American community.”
Allender added that he was considering issuing a formal statement and letter condemning Ure’s views, but would give the hotel owner the opportunity to withdraw his comments and apologize publicly before taking official action.
He also said that he had not contacted the owner of the hotel.
“The local government has no right to sanction this business, although discrimination based solely on race is completely illegal, as well as wrong and heartless,” Allender said. “This is a much bigger issue that they will have to defend to someone else, not to me.”
According to Rapid City police, the day before Ure’s controversial comments, a shooting occurred in a hotel room at 4:30 a.m., resulting in a man suffering life-threatening injuries. The victim was taken to a local hospital, where he was successfully treated.
Quincy Bear Robe, 19, was identified as the prime suspect and was arrested on multiple charges, including aggravated assault and felony with a firearm, police said.
Quincy Bear Robe, 19, was named the prime suspect in a shooting at the Grand Getaway Hotel (pictured) on Saturday morning that nearly killed an unidentified man.
Under Allender’s post, Ure added, “Rapid City has gone to hell since the city accepts all free money with conditions attached, look for dark money!”
In addition, she called on the local police department to accept MacArthur Foundation grants two years ago and in 2015. She also offers a special $59 overnight rate for non-indigenous travelers and ranchers to find their clientele.
Back in 2020 and 2015, the MacArthur Foundation gave a total of $3.5 million to Pennington County to help reduce crime and racial disparity in local criminal courts.
“We’re not just trying to reduce incarceration, we’re trying to do it in a way that’s better for the offender and society,” County State Attorney Mark Vargo said back in February 2020. So it’s about safety and fairness, and we’ve proven we’re moving in that direction.”
A senior city official also said he could not remain silent due to conflicting comments on social media.
Ure’s son, Nick, also placed the blame on the MacArthur grants for the increase in local crime, but said that a ban on Native Americans staying at the hotel would not be considered.
“Nick says he and company don’t share his mother’s views,” said Ariel Zionts, a reporter for South Dakota Public Broadcasting News. “He says the company has a lot of Native American employees + guests.”
Leader of the Lakota Nation, also known as the Teton Sioux, Tim Jago said that Ure’s comments could affect the city and the hotel’s revenues, as many Native Americans will now avoid living in the family business.
“I think a lot of them won’t,” Jago told The Daily Beast. “No one wants to go where they are not welcome.”