Since April 2016, Native leaders and families, along with their Water Protector allies, have gathered at the site of the Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL) route and bravely maintained their unarmed demonstration. Fighting for the preservation of clean and safe water sources for the tribal native communities (DAPL will poison water for millions) and protection of water’s inherent sanctity to the Earth (Mni Wiconi or “Water is Life”), our Native brothers and sisters have also advocated for the honoring of the 1851 Federal Treaty signed in Fort Laramie, by halting a pipeline that would cut through 38 miles of territory sanctioned to the Natives without their consent and by a grander standing up for indigenous rights and dignity, so long forgotten and disposed of.
Many joined the #NoDAPL movement. From public pressure mounting against the pipeline through the DeFund DAPL initiative – with current figures surpassing $74 million divested overall – to cities like Seattle and Davis unanimously voting to divest their $3 billion account with and $30 million investments in Wells Fargo, respectively, much attention has rightfully turned towards supporting the human rights of our country’s indigenous people. In early December, Water Protectors were joined by thousands of US army veterans, standing as human shields in a beautiful display of solidarity. Pope Francis has even commented on this breach to Native rights, stating the need to protect native land is “especially clear when planning economic activities which may interfere with indigenous cultures and their ancestral relationship to the Earth,” while also affirming the need for consent from Native peoples in such matters as with accordance to the 1997 UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.
Thousands of Native Americans echoed this plea, as they chanted “no consent, no pipeline,” as a part of their 4-Day Native Nations Rise March and Camp in Washington DC. Tipis were erected at the Washington Monument in front of the White House, and the Standing Rock Sioux Nation and other Native leaders led a march in prayer and action on Friday, March 10. Native Nations Rise highlighted “the necessity to respect Indigenous Nations and their right to protect their homelands, environment and future generations.”
This demonstration comes 2 weeks after the Water Protectors and Native activists at Standing Rock were evicted from their land on February 22 by noon. 10 arrests were made, as law enforcement officers cut open camp shelters for evacuation through police raids, and structures were set ablaze by Water Protectors while they emptied the camp. The Oceti Sakowin Camp in Cannon Ball, North Dakota was heart-wrenchingly barren by that evening.
The pipeline is now set to be completed by April 1, the same day in which one year earlier Native activism began at Standing Rock, when a group of 200 Native Americans rode on horseback to express concern with the pipeline’s location on sacred land.
An 11-page memo now made available to the public reveals that the pipeline’s original route near Bismarck was stated to have “more direct and more disproportionate” impacts to minorities, though only 2% of residents in communities near Bismarck live below the poverty line and 40% of Standing Rock’s 8,200 population live in poverty.
Many referred to the February 22 evacuation as Standing Rock’s Last Stand. I, however, view the lasting effects of their efforts as their legacy, one which embodies the true essence of peaceful persistence.
With their example of leadership in mind, the struggle for Native rights and human rights continues.
