How You Can Help The Great Sioux Nation Stop The Black Snake Sneaking Into The Missouri River
As lovers of the outdoors, water recreation enthusiasts and human beings, in general, we should make an effort to protect the Missouri River and those whose lives depend on it for sustenance.
“I am a mother,” replied Mika Mag, when she was asked who she was connected with and why she had organized a meeting concerning the North Dakota Access pipeline. After watching footage, reading articles and feeling helpless, Mag simply created an event on the Action Network to gather together anyone from the Vallejo and Bay Area communities interested in getting informed and creating mobilization strategies to assist in the prevention of the continued construction of the pipeline.
On Sunday afternoon, nine people from around the Bay, including a college student, a journalist and a Native American descendant, gathered at a long table, in a small room at the John F. Kennedy Library in Vallejo to attempt to make a difference. They were 1,500 miles away from the water protectors on the front lines at Standing Rock Reservation in North Dakota, but each of them felt the fierce need to help in some way.
The Standing Rock Sioux tribe established the Sacred Stone Spirit Camp in April of 2016 “as a center of spiritual and cultural opposition to the Dakota Access pipeline, and is determined to stop construction through prayer and non-violent direct action until adequate tribal consultation and environmental review are conducted,” according to the Sacred Stone Legal Defense Fund website. In August, a massive amount of support was gained as the pipeline construction creeped toward the Missouri River about one mile north of the Standing Rock Reservation and two more camps were created, the Oceti Sakowin and Red Warrior camps.
In September, the Justice Department, the Department of the Army and the Department of the Interior released a joint statement that included this declaration:
“Finally, we fully support the rights of all Americans to assemble and speak freely. We urge everyone involved in protest or pipeline activities to adhere to the principles of nonviolence. Of course, anyone who commits violent or destructive acts may face criminal sanctions from federal, tribal, state, or local authorities.”
There is still much that can be done for those of us unable to travel to North Dakota to be a presence in alliance with the tribal communities. First and foremost, you should educate yourself on the federal violations that have taken place, including the disregard of the Treaty of Fort Laramie of 1868 and Executive Order 12898.
To maintain a strong presence and work towards peaceably resolving the conflict, the Standing Rock Sioux can use your help from afar. Here are a few things you can do to assist in stopping the North Dakota Access pipeline from being constructed:
Directly donate money to the cause, either on their Sacred Stone Camp supplies fundraiser website or the Legal Fund fundraiser website. Donations of money can be sent via Paypal to freshetcollective@gmail.com and money or supplies can be sent directly to:
Sacred Stone Camp
P.O. Box 1011
Fort Yates, ND 58538
They are especially in need of winter supplies, including subzero temperature sleeping bags, winter coats, wall tents and firewood.
The Native American Health Alliance at the University of California San Francisco and health care providers in the Bay Area are also fundraising to provide volunteer medical services to the water protectors on the front lines at Standing Rock. You can donate to the cause here.
You can find your Congressional Representative here and urge them to help stop the Army Corp of Engineers from granting an easement to the construction company to continue building the pipeline, or “black snake” as it is referred to by the Sioux.
There are several petitions to sign, including the Standing Rock Youth petition on Change.org and a petition to the White House, which has already recieved more than 200,000 signatures above it’s goal of 100,000.
Contact the banks funding the pipeline.
Make a call to the White House at (202) 456-1111 or (202) 456-1414.
Other important people to contact and urge to stop the construction include:
North Dakota Governor Jack Dalrymple:
Office of Governor
State of North Dakota
600 East Boulevard Avenue
Bismarck, ND 58505-0100
(701) 328-2200
Jo-Ellen Darcy
Assistant Secretary of Army Corp of Engineers
(703) 697-8986
Contact the executives of the companies building the pipeline:
Lee Hanse
Executive Vice President
Energy Transfer Partners, L.P.
800 E Sonterra Blvd #400
San Antonio, Texas 78258
Telephone: (210) 403-6455
Glenn Emery
Vice President
Energy Transfer Partners, L.P.
800 E Sonterra Blvd #400
San Antonio, Texas 78258
Telephone: (210) 403-6762
Glenn.Emery@energytransfer.com
Michael (Cliff) Waters
Lead Analyst
Energy Transfer Partners, L.P.
1300 Main St.
Houston, Texas 77002
Telephone: (713) 989-2404
Michael.Waters@energytransfer.com
It is important to note, as well, that the Morton County Sheriff Kyle Kirchmeier has asked other states for assistance in silencing the water protectors by invoking the Emergency Management Assistance Compact. The EMAC was put into place to provide assistance to a state when a governor declares a state of emergency by way of "natural disaster, technological hazard, man-made disaster, civil emergency aspects of resources shortages, community disorders, insurgency, or enemy attack." Militarized police support has been sent from Minnesota, Wisconsin, Indiana, South Dakota, Nebraska and Ohio in response to the peaceful protests going on at the Standing Rock Reservation. Here is a list of people to contact concerning this exaggerated reaction to the water protectors.
#HonorTheTreaties #NoBakken #SacredStoneCamp #STOPDAPL #MniWiconi #SacredWater #NoDAPL #RezpectOurWater #StandWithStandingRock
We want to acknowledge and thank the past, present, and future generations of all Native Nations and Indigenous Peoples whose ancestral lands we travel, explore, and play on. Always practice Leave No Trace ethics on your adventures and follow local regulations. Please explore responsibly!
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