So by now you have probably done the Facebook check-in to Standing Rock, have posted the #NoDAPL and have seen countless articles and videos of the horrors going on in North Dakota. If you aren’t sure what this project totally is, here’s a quick run down. The pipeline is about 1,172 miles and will be responsible for carrying crude oil across several states. Now this pipeline threatens to cut through sacred land of the Standing Rock Sioux tribe and thus is threatening not only their heritage, but cutting through the little land that was not stolen from them. This is severely upsetting to the tribe, and their health is at risk because of potential water contamination by this pipeline — something the pipeline company insists will not happen, but we can’t really trust their word.

The treatment of the native people in this tribe and those in tribes across the nation is simply appalling. And the attempt to install the Dakota Access Pipeline is probably the biggest injury to insult I have seen in quite awhile. This tribe, like many others, has already had so much of their land wrongfully taken from them. They've had to watch big business destroy and tear apart the land they once loved and called home. Apparently we as a society, or big businesses at least, have not moved past this concept of “we are in power, therefore we can do as we wish even if it hurts others”. I am happy to see so many people are now rallying around Standing Rock. So many celebrities, activists, everyday citizens and even enemy tribes have all banded together to fight this horrific pipeline.

The rallying together of all these people is so inspiring. It's not just those who are affected, it's those who see the injustice of it all, who are so moved to fight back. And that's just amazing. I fully believe in the power of movements like these to change the world. Too long have the native peoples of this country been abused and wronged. Too long have they had their land taken and desecrated. Too long have they protected and respected this beautiful planet we live on, and we have simply dismissed them as lesser.

The atrocities occurring at Standing Rock are nothing short of crimes against humanity. Dogs being used to threaten tribe members — even pregnant women, tear gas used on non-violent protestors and people being thrown in kennels that they call cells. The fact that such treatment is still occurring with no government intervention to stop it, sickens me to my core. These people are not radicals standing up for some crazy cause. All they want to do is protect their homeland and their water. Protect the little land that has been in their families for generations and that they want for their children. I encourage all young people to do whatever you can to support the Standing Rock Sioux tribe. This is the start of something we will read about in history books. Make sure you're on the right side of it.