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access to drinking water, American Indians, arrests, Bakken oil, Bismarck North Dakota, Cannonball River, Civil Rights, clean water, Clean Water Act, Columbus Day, Crow Butte, Dakota Access Pipeline, drinking water, Eminent Domain, Energy Transfer Partners, environment, exploitation, Fracking, Human Rights, Indian Removal Act, indigenous rights, Injuction, karst, Lake Oahe, leaking pipeline, mining, Missouri River, Native Americans, Natural Gas & Oil Drilling, NEPA, North Dakota, oil spill, oil spill clean-up, oil spill clean-up ice, peaceful protest, Pine Ridge reservation, pipeline, protection of tribal lands, protection of tribal resources, protectors, riot police, risk management, Sacred Stone Camp, Sioux, slavery, Standing Rock Reservation, Standing Rock Sioux Tribe, Trail of Tears, Treaty Rights, UN, UN Human Rights Commission, United Nations, US Army Corps of Engineers, US DOJ, US EPA, USA, value of life, water, water intake, water protectors
“Dave Archambault, chairperson of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe, explains that the oil pipeline “is threatening the lives of people, lives of my tribe, as well as millions down the river. It threatens the ancestral sites that are significant to our tribe. And we never had an opportunity to express our concerns. This is a corporation that is coming forward and just bulldozing through without any concern for tribes.”
The “bulldozing” of Indigenous lives, Indigenous lands, and Indigenous rights all began with Columbus’s invasion in 1492. Columbus’s policies toward Indigenous peoples in the Caribbean were genocidal. On the island that became Haiti and the Dominican Republic, Columbus ordered Taíno people’s hands chopped off if they did not deliver sufficient quantities of gold. His men took women and girls as sex slaves. He had Taínos chased down by vicious dogs. He ordered his men to “spread terror” among Taínos who resisted—and they did resist. And he launched the transatlantic slave trade—from the Americas to Europe, as well as from Africa to the Americas. “Let us in the name of the Holy Trinity go on sending all the slaves that can be sold,” he wrote….” http://www.commondreams.org/views/2016/10/04/support-indigenous-rights-abolish-columbus-day (“Support Indigenous Rights: Abolish Columbus Day” by Bill Bigelow)
“…activists continue to push for the federal government and public schools to stop celebrating Christopher Columbus… This is not about what went on 500 years ago,” Bigelow adds. “It’s about what’s going on today: an inspiring struggle for rights and dignity.” http://www.commondreams.org/news/2016/10/10/indigenous-peoples-day-sweeps-nation-battles-intensify-native-american-rights
It should go without saying that much of the impact of Hurricane Matthew on Haiti is the legacy of Columbus’ exploitive mind-set, which lives on. However, people often fail to understand the extent to which it lives on in the US, Canada, and Russia today.
“Dakota Access Pipeline Police Celebrate Columbus Day by Continuing Brutal Tradition October 10, 2016 , by Nick Bernabe
(ANTIMEDIA) North Dakota — Militarized Dakota Access Pipeline police celebrated Columbus Day in truly fascistic fashion when they descended upon peaceful protesters and began mass arresting as many of them as possible. According to the Morton County Sheriff’s Department, 27 water protectors were arrested Monday, two of whom were charged with felonies for chaining themselves to pipeline construction equipment.
The mass arrests of Native American protesters and allies on Columbus Day comes just a day after the U.S. Court of Appeals denied the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe’s request for an injunction to stop construction of the Dakota Access Pipeline.
Well-known American actress Shailene Woodley was present during the crackdown and streamed live video for over two hours during the protest. She was arrested without being read her Miranda Rights and claimed law enforcement singled her out for being famous. When her live video stream ended, roughly 40,000 people were watching the arrest unfold.
A source close to the Sacred Stone Camp, the pipeline opposition location in North Dakota, tells Anti-Media law enforcement are using videos and photos on social media to identify other people accused of trespassing and issuing warrants for their arrest.
Not lost amid the chaos in North Dakota is the dark irony of the entire situation. On a day the U.S. government has designated to celebrate Christopher Columbus’ “discovery” of America, Native Americans who view Columbus as a genocidal conqueror continue to be oppressed. And the United States’ long tradition of evicting and brutalizing Native Americans, the original inhabitants of America, goes on — this time in the name of an oil pipeline.
This article (Dakota Access Pipeline Police Celebrate Columbus Day by Continuing Brutal Tradition) is free and open source. You have permission to republish this article under a Creative Commons license with attribution to Nick Bernabe and theAntiMedia.org.Anti-Media Radio airs weeknights at 11pm Eastern/8pm Pacific.” http://theantimedia.org/pipeline-police-columbus-day/
Photo by Jane Fleming Kleeb, 10 Oct. 2016 of riot police at the Dakota Access Protest site: https://twitter.com/i/web/status/785556752284676096
“After Court Lifts Injunction, Government Once Again Calls for Voluntary Halt to Dakota Access Published on Monday, October 10, 2016 by Common Dreams
As arrests of water protectors continued on Monday, joint letter from three agencies says that Standing Rock Sioux objections should be considered
by Jon Queally, staff writer
Repeating a previous request last month, federal agencies on Monday asked the company building the Dakota Access Pipeline to voluntarily halt construction so that objections raised by the Standing Rock Sioux and other tribes can be properly considered.
A joint statement issued by the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers, the Department of the Interior, and the Justice Department asked for the pause in work less than 24 hours after a federal court lifted an injunction against the controversial oil pipeline that opponents say threatens regional water supplies and infringes on tribal sovereignty.
According to Reuters, the joint statement said the Army Corp is still reviewing concerns raised by the Standing Rock Sioux tribe and other tribal nations about the pipeline’s path.
On Monday, protests against the pipeline continued with numerous arrests, including that of actress Shailene Woodley who live-streamed her arrest on Facebook live:
Despite Sunday’s court ruling, pipeline opponents vowed to continue, and intensify, their resistance the project.
“Our hearts and minds go to the pipeline fighters,” said Tom Goldtooth, executive director of the Indigenous Environmental Network. “[We] will continue to use prayer and peaceful civil disobedience to disrupt business-as-usual and stop this black snake from being completed. This fight is far from over.”
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 License
http://www.commondreams.org/news/2016/10/10/after-court-lifts-injunction-government-once-again-calls-voluntary-halt-dakota
”
Although it was a US Federal Holiday, someone at the US DOJ came into work to issue a press release. We don’t know if the press release was before or after the arrests.
“JUSTICE NEWS
Department of Justice
Office of Public Affairs
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Monday, October 10, 2016
Joint Statement from Department of Justice, Department of the Army and Department of the Interior Regarding D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals Decision in Standing Rock Sioux Tribe v. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
The Department of Justice, the Department of the Army and the Department of the Interior today issued the following statement regarding the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals’ decision in Standing Rock Sioux Tribe v. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers:
“We appreciate the D.C. Circuit’s opinion.
“We continue to respect the right to peaceful protest and expect people to obey the law.
“The Army continues to review issues raised by the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe and other Tribal nations and their members and hopes to conclude its ongoing review soon. In the interim, the Army will not authorize constructing the Dakota Access Pipeline on Corps land bordering or under Lake Oahe. We repeat our request that the pipeline company voluntarily pause all construction activity within 20 miles east or west of Lake Oahe.
“We also look forward to a serious discussion during a series of consultations, starting with a listening session in Phoenix on Tuesday, on whether there should be nationwide reform on the Tribal consultation process for these types of infrastructure projects.”
16-1184
Office of Public Affairs
Updated October 10, 2016
https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/joint-statement-department-justice-department-army-and-department-interior-regarding-dc
On Sunday Oct 9, 2016, a statement was issued on Facebook by the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe:
“Standing Rock Sioux Tribe will continue fight against pipeline despite court setback
U.S. Court of Appeals denies injunction that would have halted construction during appeal process
Cannon Ball, N.D.—The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit today rejected the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe’s request for an injunction to halt construction of the Dakota Access Pipeline by Texas-based Energy Transfer Partners. The decision comes as the Tribe is pursuing an appeal to stop construction while the rest of the case proceeds in U.S. District Court.
“The Standing Rock Sioux Tribe is not backing down from this fight,” said Dave Archambault II, Chairman of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe. “We are guided by prayer, and we will continue to fight for our people. We will not rest until our lands, people, waters and sacred places are permanently protected from this destructive pipeline.”
The 1,168-mile pipeline crosses through the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe’s ancestral lands and within a half mile of the reservation boundary. Construction crews have already destroyed and desecrated confirmed sacred and historic sites, including burials and cultural artifacts. The original pipeline route crossed the Missouri River just north of Bismarck, the capital of North Dakota. The route was later shifted downstream, to the tribe’s doorstep, out of concerns for the city’s drinking water supply.
“We call on Dakota access to heed the government’s request to stand down around Lake Oahe,” said Jan Hasselman, lead attorney from Earthjustice, which is representing the Tribe. “The government is still deciding whether or not Dakota access should get a permit. Continuing construction before the decision is made would be a tragedy given what we know about the importance of this area.”
In its ruling, a panel of U.S. Circuit Court judges denied the tribe’s request for an injunction, allowing construction to continue as the Tribe’s appeal is considered. Previously, the Department of Justice announced a temporary halt to pipeline construction on federal lands and requested that Energy Transfer Partners voluntarily halt construction on private lands.
“The federal government recognizes what is at stake and has asked DAPL to halt construction,” said Archambault. “We hope that they will comply with that request.”
Archambault notes that by allowing pipeline construction to continue, today’s ruling threatens millions.
“This ruling puts 17 million people who rely on the Missouri River at serious risk,” said Archambault. “And, already, the Dakota Access Pipeline has led to the desecration of our sacred sites when the company bulldozed over the burials of our Lakota and Dakota ancestors. This is not the end of this fight. We will continue to explore all lawful options to protect our people, our water, our land, and our sacred place.”
Link to court documents.
https://ecf.cadc.uscourts.gov/cmecf/servlet/TransportRoom
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