South Dakota hotel owner sparks fury after banning Native Americans from staying because she can’t tell ‘who is a bad Native or a good Native’ following shooting spree

• Connie Uhre, 76, wrote a now-deleted comment on Facebook on Sunday that she can ‘not allow a Native American to enter our business including Cheers’
• The owner of the Grand Getaway Hotel in Rapid City also said that she couldn’t make a distinction between ‘a bad Native or a good Native’
• A shooting in one of the hotel’s rooms took place at 4:30 a.m. and left a man with life-threatening injuries
• Uhre also mistakenly said in her comments that the unidentified victim of the shooting was dead
• However, the man was taken to a local hospital, where he was treated for his injuries
• Quincy Bear Robe, 19, was identified as the main suspect and was arrested on on multiple charges
• The hotel-owner also blamed city officials, including the mayor, for accepting grant money to resolve crime in the area
• Rapid City Mayor Steve Allender shared Uhre’s tweets on Twitter on Monday and said that her views do not ‘represent the communities values’
• He said he couldn’t stay quiet over the controversial comments on social media 

A South Dakota hotel owner sparked fury after banning Native Americans from her property following a shooting there.

Connie Uhre, who owns the Grand Gateway Hotel in Rapid City, issued the edict on Facebook Sunday after a non-fatal shooting there Saturday, which she wrongly claimed resulted in a death.

Uhre, 76, wrote under a Facebook post by Mayor Steve Allender: ‘Due to the killing that took place at the Grand Gateway Hotel on March 19, 2022…we will no longer allow any Native American on property or Cheers Sports Bar. Natives killing Natives. Ranchers and Travelers will receive a very special rate of 59.00 a night.’

Uhre also claimed that Allender and the city’s police department were both funded by ‘dark money’ and claimed she was unable to tell ‘who is a good Native and bad Native.’  Her edict broke the law, with her son Nick since saying that his mom spoke out of place, and that no such rule is in place. 

Allender himself subsequently shared a screenshot of her remarks, and condemned them as bigoted and wrong, the Rapid City Journal reported. 

Mayor Allender told the Rapid City Journal that he couldn’t remain tight-lipped over Uhre’s comments after he had read them. 

Connie Uhre, owner of the Grand Gateway Hotel in Rapid City, South Dakota said on Facebook on Sunday that she can ‘not allow a Native American to enter our business including Cheers,’ and that she couldn’t make the difference between ‘who is a bad Native or a good Native’ after a near-deadly shooting took place at her hotel in the early  mornings of Saturday between two men

Uhre is also offering a discount to non-Native Americans to stay at her business. Pictured: Uhre posing in an undated picture, shared on her Facebook profile in 2014

Rapid City Mayor Steve Allender shared Uhre’s tweets on Twitter on Monday and said that her views do not ‘represent the communities values’ after the hotel-owner blamed him for crime increase in the city 

‘I just felt that I couldn’t be silent and pretend like this is just a harmless venting out of frustration,’ he said during an interview on Monday. ‘This is an attack on not only the 12 percent of Rapid Citians who are Native American, but also the larger Native American population nationwide. So I sent the Tweet, on the road traveling today, as a bare minimum symbol of support to the Native American community.’

Allender added that he’s considering whether to issue an official statement and a letter condemning Uhre’s views, but will give the hotel owner a chance to take back her comments and apologize publicly before taking official action.

He also revealed that he has not been in touch with the hotel owner.

‘The local government has no authority to sanction this business although discrimination based solely upon race is completely unlawful in addition to being wrong and heartless,’ Allender disclosed. ‘This is a much larger issue that they’ll have to defend to someone else, not me.’  

A day prior to Uhre’s controversial comments, a shooting in one of the hotel’s rooms took place at 4:30 a.m. and left a man with life-threatening injuries, according to the Rapid City Police. The victim was taken to a local hospital, where he was successfully treated.

Quincy Bear Robe, 19, was identified as the main suspect and was arrested on multiple charges, including aggravated assault and commission of a felony with a firearm, according to police.

Quincy Bear Robe, 19, was identified as the main suspect in relation to the shooting that took place at Grand Getaway Hotel (pictured) on Saturday morning, nearly killing an unidentified man

Writing under Allender’s post, Uhre added: ‘Rapid City has gone to hell since the City has been accepting all the Free Money with strings attached, Look up Dark Money!’ 

Furthermore, she called out the local police department for accepting MacArthur Foundation grants two years ago and in 2015. She is also offering a $59 special nightly rate for non-Native travelers and ranchers to niche her clientele.

Back in 2020 and in 2015, Pennington County was given a total of $3.5 million by the MacArthur Foundation to help reduce it’s crime rate and racial inequality within the local criminal courts.  

‘We’re not just trying to reduce the jail population, we’re trying to do so in a way that is a better outcome for the offender and the community,’ said the county’s state attorney Mark Vargo, back in February 2020. ‘So it truly is about both safety and justice, and we’ve proven that we’re moving in that direction.’  

Uhre’s son, Nick, also put the blame on the MacArthur Grants for the local crime increase, but said that a ban on Native Americans staying at the hotel would not be considered.

‘Nick says he and the company do not share his mother’s views,’ Arielle Zionts, a  reporter for South Dakota Public Broadcasting News said. ‘He says (the) company has many Native American employees + guests.’ 

Leader of the Lakota people, also known as the Teton Sioux, Tim Giago said that Uhre’s comments could have an effect on the city and the hotel’s revenue, as many Native Americans will now avoid staying at the family’s business.  

‘I think probably a lot of them won’t,’ Giago told The Daily Beast. ‘No one wants to go where they’re not welcome.’ 

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