Water cannons in sub-freezing weather. Prayers. Rubber Bullets. Devotion. Concussion grenades. Love. The Indigenous response to tyranny and violence today is what it has been since 1492: band together even more deeply, practice ancient traditions, speak truth to colonial power, and pray and pray and pray. No matter the problem, the answer is always Love and Remember the Stories of Who Indigenous People Are and How to Live Correctly on Mother Earth.
Since Monday, November 21, violence has escalated in Morton County, Cannon Ball, North Dakota where hundreds of protestors stand around-the-clock watch to prevent an oil pipeline from being dug. Greenpeace spokeswoman Mary Sweeters calls it "nothing short of horrific" and Sierra Club Executive Director Michael Brune calls what the militant police in riot gear are doing "act[s] of brutality" and "nothing short of life-threatening and inhumane." Meanwhile, top American government officials remain silent. Police are also stressed and under duress while their leaders make decisions that they are required to obey if they want to keep their jobs. Nevertheless, sacred objects are being confiscated and destroyed; the 528 people arrested are herded onto trucks that are little more than cages and then incarcerated in over-crowded cells--medical attention is not provided. These are Third-World country responses to peaceful protests--this is not supposed to happen in the United States. Above is a photograph by Rob Wilson published in Indian Country Today Media Network.
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