NDN Collective leader tagged with restraining order, could face charges

Nick Tilsen, CEO of NDN Collective, could face charges for threatening texts, phone calls

The Rapid City Public Safety Building, which houses the Sheriff’s Office and the city’s Police Department. (Jonathan Ellis/The Dakota Scout)

RAPID CITY — The heads of two Black Hills-based, Native American-related nonprofits are at odds with one another, a squabble that’s led to one being hit with a restraining order for alleged stalking.

Brandon Ferguson, 40, received a restraining order this month against NDN Collective President Nick Tilsen, after a court determined Tilsen stalked Ferguson.

Ferguson is the head of Ending the Silence, a non-profit dedicated to ending “native-on-native” violence. NDN, founded in 2018, aims to “build the collective power of Indigenous Peoples, communities, and Nations to exercise our inherent right to self-determination,” according to its mission statement.

The two’s disagreement stems from an event that Ending the Silence had planned for May of last year.

The event, Akisa 2022, was put together by Ferguson with the intentions of bringing the community together following protests against a Rapid City hotelier accused of racially profiling Native Americans.

As part of the event, various Native American performers were to be brought to Rapid City. 

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But Ferguson, a frequent NDN critic, says that he specifically instructed performers not to talk about racism, “land back,” NDN or wear the organization’s merchandise. He told The Dakota Scout he believes this set Tilsen off.