Politics November 3, 2016
As tensions between Standing Rock protectors and law enforcements rise, women from across the nation show no signs of backing down.
For months, the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe and supporters have been fighting for their Indigenous rights and for the health of their families, their water and their sacred land. What began as a demonstration against the construction of the North Dakota Pipeline, however, has turned into a viral movement.
And while celebrities like Mark Ruffalo and Chris Hemsworth have been praised for “standing up for Standing Rock,” here are just a few of the women ENTITY wants to thank.
When the Dakota Access Pipeline protests began in spring 2016, Anna Lee and the Standing Rock Youth helped spearhead the movement. Online, she started a Change.org petition to explain the history and significance of the Standing Rock Reservation.
“My friends and I have played in the river since we were little; my great grandparents raised chickens and horses along with it,” Lee wrote. “In Dakota/Lakota we say ‘mni Wiconi.’ Water is life. Native American people know that water is the first medicine not just for us, but for all human beings living on this earth.”
The petition has garnered over 360,000 supporters and various celebrities, such as Ben Affleck, Ray Fish and Gal Gadot, have supported the group’s online campaign, “Rezpect Our Water.”
Green Party presidential candidate Jill Stein was one of the first public figures to join the movement. “It’s absolutely critical to protect this land, to protect these sacred sites and to protect this water,” Stein argued during her visit to the protest sites. “We must win this battle.”
READ MORE: Is Jill Stein the Next Bernie Sanders?
Stein also spray-painted the words “I approve this message” onto the blade of a bulldozer to show her support for the Standing Rock protests. And even though the presidential candidate was charged with misdemeanor counts of criminal trespass and mischief, Stein said in a statement, “I hope Dakota authorities press charges against the real vandalism taking place at the Standing Rock Sioux reservation: the bulldozing of sacred burial sites and the unleashing of vicious attack dogs.”
I hope ND presses charges against the real vandals who bulldoze sacred burial sites. #NoDAPL https://t.co/34e6stP5wQ pic.twitter.com/6Hn3LT1500
— Dr. Jill Stein (@DrJillStein) September 7, 2016
“Our campaign supports the courageous indigenous leaders who are taking a stand to protect future generations from the deadly greed of the fossil fuel industry. We approve of their vision and courage,” she added.
Amy Goodman, investigative journalist and executive producer of “Democracy Now” went to Standing Rock to cover what she calls “the standoff at Standing Rock.” At the time, the major broadcast news networks – ABC, CBS and NBC – had barely covered the protests. Her footage captured hundreds of people trying to fight back, only to be confronted by private security contractors with attack dogs and pepper spray.
As a response, Morton County, North Dakota issued a warrant for her arrest, charging her with “riot,” a misdemeanor punishable by jail time and a fine. However, the judge rejected these charges for lack of evidence.
Goodman believes it’s imperative that these protests continue to penetrate the public consciousness. “I dare say the lack of coverage may be because this is largely Native American resistance and protest,” she told NY Mag. “Which is why it’s so critical that people do cover this, because when the situation is presented to people, they care.”
Dr. Sara Jumping Eagle, a Stanford University graduate, is a Standing Rock Sioux pediatrician and was one of the first people to be arrested in the resistance against the North Dakota Pipeline. In a “Democracy Now” interview, she told Amy Goodman that before the Standing Rock camps began, she went with the intent of participating “as any citizen would.” However, after she was arrested, she was named in a SLAPP suit – which was meant to intimidate critics into abandoning the movement – and a restraining order that instructed her to stay a hundred feet away.
Right now, however, the SLAPP suit has been dismissed. “I know that I’m not guilty of disorderly conduct,” the pediatrician said. “That’s my fight that I’ll continue. And so will many of the water prosecutors.” She explained that she’s fighting so that people understand how a pipeline spill could be detrimental to her family and community members.
There are many artists at camp <3 #NoDAPL #waterislife #MniWiconi pic.twitter.com/QxfaU9IEyJ
— Sara Jumping Eagle (@drjumpingeagle) October 18, 2016
“As people, we’re going to stand up against [the corporations] and we’re going to continue to fight for our health and our way of life,” Dr. Jumping Eagle added.
Many celebs have shared comments about their support for the Standing Rock protests, but Shailene Woodley made national headlines because of her headstrong commitment on site and on social media. While protesting alongside the Native American community, the “Divergent” actress was arrested on October 10th and charged with criminal trespassing and engaging in a riot. As a result, she could face two months in jail and a $3,000 in fine if convicted.
She’s expected to stand trial in January, but in the meantime she’s still using her influential platform to share Standing Rock’s message.
She penned a letter on TIME to explain her experiences and to help voice concerns of Native Americans across the nation. “We grow up romanticizing native culture, native art, native history … without knowing native reality,” Woodley wrote. “What if we used [my arrest] as a catalyst for a full societal shift in the way we start thinking and treating and learning from indigenous peoples? So that in the future, it doesn’t require a non-native celebrity to bring attention to the cause.”
READ MORE: Standing Rock Sioux Tribe: ‘Water Is Life.’
Something as big and vital as the Standing Rock protests have proven to withstand physical boundaries. Whether or not people can go to North Dakota to join the tribes gathered together, they’re still finding a way to show their solidarity.
#NoDAPL solidarity demo in Grand Central NYC. Cops surround demo while MTA uses PSA system to drown out protesters. pic.twitter.com/oQ7OpRuaok
— Ash J (@AshAgony) November 1, 2016
The women in the photo above participated in a gathering at Grand Central Station. Dozens of people came together and disrupted NYC’s morning commute in order to help raise awareness of the North Dakota protests. Some of these people chanted, “It is always a political fight” while others waved signs with familiar messages that read “Water is life.”
Lorena Ambrosio, a demonstrator originally from Peru, explained how she wanted to help protect indigenous people. “Our people at Standing Rock are being terrorized by military and police,” she said (via CNN). “They are being pepper sprayed, shot with rubber bullets, arrested and beaten. We will not stand for this.”
On the other hand, thousands of other people are checking in on the Standing Rock Indian Reservation’s Facebook page to increase awareness. So far, over 4,000 people have “visited” the site. According to Minneapolis City Council member Alondra Cano, who has traveled to North Dakota twice, virtually checking in was her way to remain engaged after returning home from Standing Rock.
“I think it’s important to use social media as a tool to advance social justice, and this is a way to participate from afar,” Cano said (via Star Tribune). “It’s the environmental justice movement of our time.”
Aside from all the support the Standing Rock movement has garnered, many of the women on the frontlines are fighting for their own homes, communities and lives. These women fight to stop the construction in order to protect Mother Earth, water, the global climate, the sacred sites and Indigenous rights.
These women, all featured on EcoWatch, play different roles in the community as camp organizers, cooks, media coordinators and council members. They share their messages and experiences, fighting to be heard.
Tara Houska, national campaigns director of Honor the Earth, told EcoWatch, “I came to Standing Rock when I heard a call out for help, to protect the water and to stop this destructive project from going through these people’s homelands. I came to stand with my Indigenous relatives for something that is much larger than just a single project. We want to stop this project but we also want to take a stand and say, ‘No more.’ Enough is enough.”
For those called to be active contributors to change, here are some starting places:
• You can sign petitions, including the ones on Credo Action, demanding President Obama’s interference and on Change.org to stop militarized responses to Standing Rock water protectors.
• You can donate to support the Sacred Stone Camp through PayPal or GoFundMe.
• You can contact government officials, such as the Army Corps of Engineers, the North Dakota Governor or the White House to request the Dakota Access Pipeline permit is rescinded.
• You can tell the executives of Energy Transfer Partners, Lee Hanse, Glenn Emery, Michael Waters and Vicki Granado to stop building the pipeline.
To learn more about the Dakota Pipeline and how it affects the people of the Great Sioux Nation, read Standing Rock Sioux Tribe: ‘Water is Life.’
