Clyde Bellecourt, one of the most important leaders in the history of the American Indian struggle for civil rights, died Tuesday at his home in Minneapolis. He was 85.

Peggy Bellecourt, his wife, confirmed his death and said the cause was cancer.

With Dennis Banks and others, Bellecourt was a co-founder in 1968 of the American Indian Movement (AIM), which began as a local organization in Minneapolis to grapple with issues of police brutality and discrimination against Native Americans. They were soon joined by his brother, Vernon Bellecourt.

AIM quickly became a national force. The group would lead a string of major national protests in the 1970s, including a march to Washington, D.C., in 1972 called the Trail of Broken Treaties, and a 71-day occupation in 1973 of Wounded Knee, S.D., to highlight corruption on the reservation and federal injustices against Indians.

"He loved the Native people," said Peggy Bellecourt. "He loved being out there, trying to help improve conditions."

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