Sioux at Standing Rock are in a battle right now. Oil corporations and government forces are attacking them. This is the biggest gathering of Native Americans since the Battle of the Little Bighorn 140 years ago. Never before have this many tribes all come together. They are not protesters, they are protectors. Protecting the water scorce of millions of people downstream from them and protecting Sioux land. Lands which have never been given away, sold, or won in war.
This is Colonialism still happening today. Police and National Guard have all the weapons. Tear gas, guns, sonic weapons, armored personel carriers, attack dogs. All these have been used against peaceful water protectors. This is happening today. OIl corporations want to put a fracking pipeline through Sioux land. The Standing Rock Sioux said no and are backing that up with peaceful protest. Oil companies are working as fast as they can to get the pipeline built with the full support of a militarised police force. Both the UN and Amnesty International have sent monitors as there have been clear abuses of power.
This is happening at a time when the colonial corporate system is being shown to fail. This is happening when indigenous people worldwide are rising. Support is worldwide, especially from South America where people know how it is to live in constant danger from corporate bullys and murderers. This year both Noam Chomsky and The Pope said similar things, that it is the indigenous people of the world who will be the ones to save the people who regard themselves as civilised. Today Hard Rock Cafe International is owned by The Seminoles Tribe, who the US govenment tried to wipe out in the 1800s (around 200 survived in Florida swamps).
Further north in Canada fracking pipeline companies have a serious problem. There are massive areas of land owned by indiginous people. Land never lost, given away or bought. It is unceeded territory. Unist’ot’en people recently turned down $1.1 billion to put pipes across their land. They now have outposts, road blocks and patrol boats to stop companies like Chevron entering to attempt work.
For more information, search ‘Standing Rock’ on youtube
It is worth reevaluating systems that worked for many thousands of years, it is now apparent our abuse of people and planet has failed grossly in just a few hundred.
