Two Quest University students are loading their car with supplies and heading down to Cannon Ball, North Dakota to support Native American protesters there.
“One of my passions is advocating for people who don’t oftentimes have a voice that is heard and so for me this was a great opportunity to practice allyship,” said first year Quest student Emily Cole, who is making the trip south with fellow student Wesley Lapointe on Nov. 28.
For months the so-called “water protectors” of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe and their supporters have protested the 1,100-metre crude oil Dakota Access Pipeline, which they say threatens drinking water from the Missouri River. The demonstrators also argue pipeline construction disturbs sacred burial grounds.
Because the pipeline runs close to their reservation, the tribe has argued the entire project is illegal and violates their treaties with the U.S. and so is also fighting the pipeline in court.
Encampments have been set up to block the progress of the pipeline.
Police have responded to the demonstrations with hundreds of arrests, up to 400 by November. This is something that Cole has thought about, but that doesn’t scare her.
“I think police brutality in the U.S., there has been a lot of light shed on it in recent years so it is a real issue,” said Cole, 18, who was born in Oregon.
“As a white person I am not as much at risk to be arrested and mistreated in the ways that Native Americans and indigenous people down there have… so I am not as concerned for myself, but I am concerned for the people I will be with.”
Lapointe said the media focus should be on the tribe and their fight, not so much the violence or the white allies.
“Really what the focus should be is the unity and the peaceful protests and the injustices that are bringing so many people to the cause,” said Lapointe.
“The white allies are not the focus for sure.”
Lapointe recognizes the irony of the pair driving down in a Subaru, using fossil fuels, but said what the demonstrators are aiming for is the long term. “These people are fighting for a long-term cause and this is sort of a short-term sacrifice, getting down there and back, in the name of supporting this thing that could have massive implications for the native community moving forward.”
For it’s part, the company argues an alternative route would be more damaging to the environment than the current route and are appealing to the courts asking that they be allowed to complete the approved project.
“Dakota Access Pipeline has waited long enough to complete this pipeline. Dakota Access Pipeline has been granted every permit, approval, certificate and right-of-way needed for the pipeline’s construction. It is time for the courts to end this political interference,” said Kelcy Warren, CEO of Energy Transfer Partners, in a news release on Nov. 15.
To donate to the Quest students’ supplies for Standing Rock, drop off sleeping bags, warm clothing or non-perishable food at Zephyr Café or donate directly to the pair by emailing [email protected].
