Standing Rock Sioux Tribe calls on President Obama again to deny easement and honor treaty

Cannon Ball, N.D. The following statement from the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe’s Chairman, Dave Archambault II, is quoted in full:

“[November 26^th] we were notified by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers that on December 5^th, they will close all lands north of the Cannonball River, which is where Oceti Sakowin camp is located. The letter states that the lands will be closed to public access for safety concerns, and that they will allow for a ‘free speech zone’ south of the Cannonball River on Army Corps lands.

“Our Tribe is deeply disappointed in this decision by the United States, but our resolve to protect our water is stronger than ever. We ask that all everyone who can appeal to President Obama and the Army Corps of Engineers to consider the future of our people and rescind all permits and deny the easement to cross the Missouri River just north of our Reservation and straight through our treaty lands.

“When Dakota Access Pipeline chose this route, they did not consider our strong opposition. Our concerns were clearly articulated directly to them in a meeting on September 30, 2014. We have released that audio recording from our council meeting where DAPL and the ND Public Service Commission came to us with this route. We ask that the United States stop the pipeline and move it outside our treaty lands.

“It is both unfortunate and ironic that this announcement comes the day after this country celebrates Thanksgiving – a historic exchange of goodwill between Native Americans and the first immigrants from Europe. Although the news is saddening, it is not at all surprising given the last 500 years of the treatment of our people. We have suffered much, but we still have hope that the President will act on his commitment to close the chapter of broken promises to our people and especially our children.”

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Pipeline Executives Serve Standing Rock Protesters a Crop Dusting For Thanksgiving:

“Candida Savage KingBird, who posted news of crop-dusting of the Standing Rock encampment in a personal video was shot November 20th by police guarding the Dakota Access Pipeline, with a blue-point rubber bullet, damaging her ribs.  Kingbird, who posted the following video, said, ‘Thankfully no one died last night but they could have. There was bloodshed, tears, and prayer.’  She was luckier than Sophia Wilansky from New York, whose arm was nearly amputated after either a Molotov cocktail or a grenade was thrown into the crowd on Sunday night.   More than two dozen were sent to hospital when 400 protesters clashed with police.

“[According to PBS Newshour], the escalating violence against the protesters includes fire hoses in freezing temperatures and tear gas, non-lethal bullets and mace. According to The Guardian, eye-witness Kingbird charges that the encampment was crop-dusted on the night of November 13th by chartered planes flying illegally over federal tribal land with their lights off.   

“Since 2009, the EPA regulations clearly state, ‘Any spray pesticides manufactured or labeled as of January 2012 and for sale in the U.S. must display the warning on its label: Do not apply this product in a manner that results in spray (or dust) drift that harms people or any other non-target organisms or sites.’  

“Sr. Armando Elenes, a Vice President of the United Farm Workers in California, [said] in an interview that while they had investigated incidents of workers who have been exposed to pesticides due to crop dusting or from pesticide drift incidents, ‘of course it is illegal to do it.’  …[C]all it sick, deranged, inhuman, reprehensible, and a couple of dozen other things…

“On December 4, hundreds of veterans plan to ‘deploy’ to Standing Rock Indian Reservation in North Dakota to join in protest against the planned Dakota Access Pipeline.

“The event, Veterans Stand for Standing Rock, is a call for veterans to ‘assemble as a peaceful, unarmed militia’ to ‘defend the water protectors from assault and intimidation at the hands of the militarized police force and DAPL security.’ The organizers hope to prevent progress on the construction of the pipeline as well as draw national attention to the cause.

“Meantime, the lame-duck administration is doing nothing to stop the escalating violence, in spite of President Obama’s statement that ‘there is an obligation for protesters to be peaceful, and there is an obligation for authorities to show restraint...’

“As Buffy St. Marie posted on her Facebook page:  ‘Those heroes on the Standing Rock reservation have peacefully stood up to police dogs, pepper spray and militarized tanks and SWAT teams. It’s time that everyone else joined in.’ Bill McKibben writes in The New York Times Opinion Section:  ‘It is time for you to step up and end the escalating violence.’

Timeline:  The International Business Times published this complete timeline of the Standing Rock/DAPL showdown [November 23^rd]: 

“December 2014: Texas-based Energy Transfer Partners applied for a permit to build a pipeline from North Dakota’s Bakken shale fields down south to Iowa. The proposed pipeline, a $3.7 billion, 1,172-mile endeavor capable of transporting 570,000 barrels a day, begins a year of public hearings.

“January 2016: Regulators in North Dakota approved the pipeline unanimously in spite of landowners alleging that representatives of the Dakota Access project had used strong arm tactics (including an Iowa property owner who said the oil company representatives had offered a prostitute to convince him).

“April 29, 2016: The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers encountered near unanimous opposition to the pipeline during a meeting for Native Americans.

“July 26, 2016: As the Democratic National Convention was being held across the country in Philadelphia, most of the final permits needed to construct the pipeline were approved by the U.S. government. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers approved 200 water crossings for the pipeline and three easements (as in, the right for someone to use someone else’s property) for the pipeline. The easements included crossings at the Mississippi River, Lake Sakakawea and at Lake Oahe, a sacred site for the Standing Rock Sioux tribe. The easements would need to be approved by federal regulators and Congress before work could begin.

“July 27, 2016: The Standing Rock Sioux Tribe filed suit against federal regulators saying that a potential spill would threaten tribal drinking water and that the pipeline threatens sacred tribal land in violation of the National Historic Preservation Act and other laws.

“Aug. 24, 2016: A federal judge heard arguments from the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe lawyers, federal lawyers and Dakota Access lawyers. Standing Rock Sioux argued that they were not afforded the opportunity to comment on the pipeline route while the federal government said that that opportunity had been afforded to them. Outside of the courthouse in Washington, D.C., a rally featuring celebrities like Susan Sarandon and Shailene Woodley supported the tribe. At least 20 people had been arrested by this point at protests in North Dakota.

“Sept. 3, 2016: The protests in North Dakota turned violent when a private security company hired by the pipeline let dogs loose on protesters. North Dakota Gov. Terry Brandstad said he would authorize State Patrol to make arrests at the site where hundreds of people had shown up to camp.

“Sept. 9, 2016: The U.S. district judge ruled against the Standing Sioux Tribe in the morning but said that one particular area was barred from construction. Later that day, the federal government makes the surprise announcement that it was voluntarily halting work on the project.

“Sept. 10, 2016: An arrest warrant was issued for Amy Goodman, a journalist with Democracy Now who had been covering the protests. The previous week, Goodman and her team had been at the protests and filmed security forces using dogs against protesters and spraying them with pepper spray. That report went viral and was picked up by several major cable news channels.

“Sept. 13, 2016: The CEO of Dakota Access assured employees in a letter, also obtained by the media, that they were committed to building the pipeline. The company had reportedly spent over a billion dollars on equipment. Protesters had damaged some of that equipment.

“Oct. 9, 2016: The U.S. District Court of Appeals removed an injunction on private lands allowing for the pipeline to continue there. The federal government voluntary halt remains in place for U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Land nearby.

“Oct. 11, 2016: Activists disrupted the flow of millions of gallons of oil running between Canada in the U.S. The activists cut padlocks and chains to go into remote oil flow stations. There was no long term damage, activists said they had studied how to shut off the valves safely but the oil industry said that subsequent pressure buildup could have led to environmental damage from the shut offs.

“Oct. 17, 2016: A North Dakota judge rejected charges against Amy Goodman.

“Nov. 9, 2016: After the surprise presidential victory of Donald Trump, activists and tribal leaders expressed hope that President Barack Obama would kill the pipeline indefinitely. The pipeline developers had noted that they had finished construction up to the land where federal regulators had denied access. Analysts said that the pipeline was more likely than not to be finished eventually.

“Nov. 20, 2016: Police blasted nearly 400 protesters with water jets and chemical sprays in freezing cold temperatures and peppered them with rubber bullets.

“Nov. 23, 2016: Protesters and the oil company argued over what exactly happened at the Nov. 20 protests after one protester was hit by an explosion, tearing apart her arm and exposing bone. The protester, a 21-year-old woman from New York, was initially facing amputation but that appeared less and less likely as she retrieved treatment.”