Tensions escalated to a new level in North Dakota yesterday when police aggressively dispersed protestors of the Dakota Access Pipe Line, ultimately arresting 141 people.
The standoff between protestors — who identify themselves as “water protectors” — and police began last spring after attempts from the Standing Rock Sioux tribe and others failed to prevent construction. The project would cross under both the Missouri and Mississippi Rivers, and a lake near the Sioux reservation. Activists say the pipeline would seriously threaten the environment as well as American Indian sacred sites and artifacts.
While formal legal routes for stopping the $3.8 billion pipeline’s construction have been unsuccessful, the water protectors have remained in the area for months, with hundreds gathered to protest at construction sites while thousands more camp at the reservation nearby.
On Thursday, police moved in to forcibly remove those camped out, decked out in riot gear and employing rubber bullets, bean bag guns, and pepper spray to disperse the crowd. News stations shared live video feed of the arrests on Facebook, and images quickly surfaced of local deputies using batons against Sioux women and others in the removal effort.
Authorities have also accused the protestors of aggressive behavior, citing the number of protestors on horseback and suggesting that some were throwing objects at police and using flanking techniques to divert authorities. Two people have been arrested for alledgedly firing gunshots during the conflict.
Strikingly, at almost the same time, news came out of Portland, Ore., that all seven defendants from last year’s Oregon standoff had been acquitted of federal conspiracy charges. On Jan. 2, 2016, a group of armed militants led by Ammon Bundy took over the headquarters of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge and held it for nearly six weeks, demanding the federal government release the 188,000 acre space to local control.
Though none of the defendants denied that the takeover, they rooted their defense in the claim that they were protesting government overreach and were motivated by religious belief — and that they had not endangered the public or engaged in conspiracy that impeded government work.
The public was quick to note the jarring juxtaposition between the acquittal of the all-white Oregon group and the aggressive police action against the primarily American Indian protestors at Standing Rock. Yesterday evening, both Twitter and Facebook were awash with commentary comparing the two news events.
Bundy clan acquitted + Authorities use militarized violence against Indigenous activists = The American Way. When will we do better? #NoDAPL
— Koritha Mitchell (@ProfKori) October 28, 2016
The BUNDY boys get a pass for armed theft but the NATIVE AMERICANS protecting water get shot at,attacked,pepper sprayed?! #NoDAPL
— Tabetha Wallace (@TabethaWatching) October 28, 2016
— Privileged White Guy (@tripphudgins) October 28, 2016
White supremacy in America is the Bundy brothers being acquitted while native people are arrested in #NoDAPL. https://t.co/Oq0XbrcJiS
— Alex Berg (@AlexfromPhilly) October 28, 2016
Others pointed out the disparity between police reaction to Black Lives Matter protestors and the Bundy group:
If a group associated with "Black Lives Matter" did the same thing that the Bundy Family did, they would be in jail (If they lived).
— Mike Vanriel (@MikeVanriel2) October 28, 2016
Meanwhile, for its part, Black Lives Matter firmly aligned itself with the water protectors at Standing Rock, offering encouragement and support in the face of police action. Their statement of solidarity reflects a sentiment expressed by many in reaction to yesterday's news: The price of protest in America depends largely on who you are, what you look like, and how much privilege you hold.
Water Protectors are being forcibly removed from Standing Rock right now. We stand with you. #WaterIsLife #BlackLivesMatterOnIndigenousLand
— Black Lives Matter (@Blklivesmatter) October 27, 2016
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