Red Dawn Foster is an American politician serving as a member of the South Dakota Senate from the 27th district, which encompasses the Pine Ridge Reservation as well as Bennett, Haakon, Jackson, Pennington and Oglala Lakota counties.
[3] In 2016, Foster ran alongside state Senator Jim Bradford for a seat in the South Dakota House of Representatives from the 27th district.
[10] Foster has spent her career advocating for the rights of Native American people in South Dakota and has sponsored a number of bills aimed at recognizing the achievements of Indigenous people as well as bills aimed at providing Native Americans the right to hunt, fish, and visit state parks free of licenses and fees.
During this time, the Navajo nation had been suffering high rates of infection and death due to the virus after reaching out to the United States Government and receiving little help.
South Dakota's Governor Kristi Noem, who refused to implement any measures to combat Covid-19 and prioritized keeping the state open to benefit the economy,[12] threatened to take legal action against the tribes, accusing them of breaking the law.