Native American Pipeline Protest Turns Violent

[pixy0stix]

Short summary of what is happening - Several Native American tribes are protesting a pipeline route that has disturbed a burial site and other cultural important sites. Pipeline crews destroyed the burial site even though this is going through the courts. Both sides had a lot of injuries after the clash.


time.com/4478854/oil-pipeline-protest-violent/


A protest over a $3.8 billion oil pipeline turned violent after Native American tribal officials accused construction crews of destroying burial and cultural sites on private land in North Dakota.

Four security guards and two guard dogs were injured after protesters confronted construction crews on Saturday at the site outside of the Standing Rock Sioux reservation. One security officer was hospitalized with undisclosed injuries, and the two guard dogs were taken to a Bismarck veterinary clinic, according to the Morton County Sheriff’s Office spokeswoman Donnell Preskey.

Protesters said six people were bitten by the guard dogs, including a young child, and at least 30 people were pepper sprayed, tribe spokesman Steve Sitting Bear said, the Associated Press reported. Preskey said police officers had no reports of injuries.

The Standing Rock Sioux Tribe gathered to protest the oil pipeline slated to cross the nearby Missouri River, which they feel will disturb sacred grounds and affect drinking water supply for tribal members and others who live downstream. Tribe chairman David Archambault II said construction crews removed topsoil from burial and cultural sites.

“The demolition is devastating,” Archambault told the AP. “These grounds are the resting places of our ancestors. The ancient cairns and stone prayer rings there cannot be replaced. In one day, our sacred land has been turned into hollow ground.”

More:

Contains pictures and video - www.democracynow.org/2016/9/4/dakota_access_pipeline_company_attacks_native

Life in the Native American oil protest camps - www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-37249617

5 things to know about the Dakota Access Pipeline - www.cnn.com/2016/08/31/us/dakota-access-pipeline-explainer/

[fuckyourcouch]

This is so upsetting.
I do trust work for tribal lands, and this is just heartbreaking.

[darnkatz]

This makes me feel sick to my stomach for this tribe.

[tessalb]

So we take away their land, kill their people, try to make their children "white enough," oppress them, and now we're building a pipeline that threatens burial and cultural grounds?

Hell no. These people deserve so much better.

[idahome]

There really are not enough words to express how horrible this is. Why, why do we continue doing things like this?

[partiallysunny]

I've been following this story. It's heartbreaking. The situation feels hopeless.

[Saudade]

Not only that but it grubs through, under, around, and over a lot of their water supply.

Standing Rock is a pretty poor tribe, esp compared to many of the tribes around here, and they don't have a lot of resources to help fight this.

I have a few NA friends out there protesting and sending live FB videos. It's shameful what's being done.

[WOT?*]

I shared this on FB. I haven't read nearly enough about this, but what I have read has outraged me. Unfortunately, this hasn't been as front-page as it should be, for too many obvious reasons.

nodaplsolidarity.org/support-the-camps/

[stephm0188]

It's awful. I have a couple NA friends on FB who have been posting non stop, and it's disgusting what is happening and the lack of coverage surrounding it.

[Velar Fricative]

This is so heartbreaking.

[mishy]

findingourwayhomeblog.wordpress.com/2016/09/05/ten-ways-to-help/

[Gato]

H's cousin was just out there last week, delivering supplies to the camp. The Eastern Band of Cherokees, which I believe is a comparatively small tribe, just donated $50K to offset legal fees. I hope that means a good fund is being built to fight this. H and I also will give, and I just signed the petition.

It's heartbreaking to see that huge swath of bulldozed field. My xH is an archeologist, and when we were together he did tons of due diligence before starting a dig in the U.S. It was required by law. I guess when enough money is involved, it's not so required by law. UGH.

[downtoearth]

This is in a lot of our news since many of the local tribes are helping out. I just can't imagine how the pipeline company got around a NEPA review of the area and dismissed the burial site as not archeologically important?!

[secretlyevil]

Sept 5, 2016 18:26:14 GMT -5 idahome said:

There really are not enough words to express how horrible this is. Why, why do we continue doing things like this?

because we're greedy and never satisfied. We won't be satisfied until we destroy ourselves.

[secretlyevil]

My serious comment is I really wish there was some way to stop this from happening. Even if the company is fined out the wazoo, the damage is irreversible.

[mrsdewinter]

This is so so awful. And I'm not well versed in the relevant laws and treaties here, but isn't bulldozing native graves a blatant violation of NAGPRA? Or do we just not care because oil trumps POC?

[ijack]

This pisses me off. I'm assuming the pipeline company just decided the fines it will face are worth being able to get the work done and money flowing?

[isabel]

There cannot be penalties strong enough to reverse the damage that has been done. Why do we have so little regard for one another?

[pistolshrimp]

This is so, so heartbreaking. I'm also really bothered by the fact that there has been little to no coverage of this in the media. I've been getting all my info via FB and my own Google searching. I've seen nothing on TV and our local papers.

[spaghettisquash]

I think there's two seperate issues here. One, the US needs to be energy independent. So we need this oil to continue developing technology and moving forward.

But the pipeline cuts across lands sacred to a people who have been there for hundreds, perhaps thousands, of years. Further, the risk of development are all on them. If there's a spill, they are the ones who will have to pay the price. Yes, the oil company will pay a fine but the fine is minuscule in relation to their profits. See Exxon Valdez and Deepwater.

Do we trust that a company that turned dogs onto Americans peacefully protesting will follow all required safety measures properly? I sure as hell don't. Until we have same way to force the oil company to bear the bulk of the risk, I'm not comfortable with making some of the poorest people in the country do so.

[spaghettisquash]

Sept 7, 2016 11:49:00 GMT -5 incogneato said:

This is infuriating. We're so quick to tsk tsk when other people across the globe detroy history in their wars but we do it for oil? Gross, gross, gross.

Yes. Remember the outcry when the Taliban destroyed the Buddhas or ISIS destroyed Nimrud etc?

i wonder why there is no outcry now...

[Saudade]

Update: Obama administration orders pipeline construction to stop....for now.

thehill.com/policy/energy-environment/295223-obama-administration-orders-nd-pipeline-construction-to-stop

[sfy]

Sept 9, 2016 16:15:37 GMT -5 Saudade said:

Update: Obama administration orders pipeline construction to stop....for now.

thehill.com/policy/energy-environment/295223-obama-administration-orders-nd-pipeline-construction-to-stop

Thank goodness.

This decision needs to be made permanent.
Save

[mrspez07]

Sept 9, 2016 16:15:37 GMT -5 Saudade said:

Update: Obama administration orders pipeline construction to stop....for now.

thehill.com/policy/energy-environment/295223-obama-administration-orders-nd-pipeline-construction-to-stop

I was coming here to see if this had been posted.
I only knew of this story through hippies on my FB feed.

Loophole? - Did the NEPA and other permitting not get done because it's in a different "nation" and therefore the U.S. Gov't regulations aren't applicable?
I've seen the way USACE plods along in urban development projects, even with developers with deep pockets. it's crazy to me that they looked the other way in this one or didn't follow their own protocols.