Robert Reich / RSNews & Annie Leonard / Greenpeace & Krystal Two Bulls / Red Warrior Camp – 2016-11-01 23:53:41
http://readersupportednews.org/opinion2/277-75/40017-focus-the-us-government-must-permanently-halt-the-dakota-access-pipeline
The US Government Must Permanently Halt the Dakota Access Pipeline
Robert Reich / Robert Reich’s Facebook Page
(November 1, 2016) — The US government must permanently halt the Dakota Access Pipeline. Now. The Army Corps of Engineers never did a proper review of its environmental impact, nor did it adequately consulted with the Standing Rock Sioux tribe.
Not only does pipeline go through tribal burial grounds, but if the pipeline were to leak or burst it would send oil deep into the Missouri River, the Standing Rock Sioux’s single source of water for everything from bathing to drinking.
Since 1995, more than 2,000 significant accidents involving oil and petroleum pipelines have occurred, adding up to roughly $3 billion in property damage, according to the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration. From 2013 to 2015, an average of 121 accidents have occurred each year.
The negative impacts on health have been severe. An in-depth 2010 report from Worcester Polytechnic Institute, which looked at the effects of three major oil spills, found increased incidences of cancer and digestive problems in people who had either ingested the oil directly in drinking water or indirectly through eating the meat of livestock exposed to the oil.
In addition, people who had used contaminated water for bathing or laundry appeared to experience a higher incidence of skin problems, ranging from mild rashes to severe and lasting eczema and malignant skin cancers.
The Obama administration must take action immediately to stop this devastation.
What do you think?
ACTION ALERT: Stop the Dakota Access Pipeline
Annie Leonard / Greenpeace
(October 31, 2016) — I could hardly believe my eyes.
Last week, I watched in horror as peaceful water protectors standing in the path of the Dakota Access Pipeline were met by heavily armed, militarized police.
More than 300 police in riot gear and armored vehicles used pepper spray, concussion grenades, rubber bullets, tasers, and a sound cannon against the protectors — they even shot horses. 141 protectors were arrested last week — some of them were held in dog kennels and marked with numbers on their bodies.
In light of this disturbing and dehumanizing violence, we must show our solidarity with #NoDAPL activists now more than ever.
President Obama has the power to revoke the permits and stop this dangerous pipeline once and for all. Instead, our government has chosen to protect the fossil fuel industry over the rights and safety of Indigenous people.
Show them you won’t stand for it. Tell President Obama to step in and STOP the Dakota Access Pipeline today.

If completed, the Dakota Access Pipeline would carry 500,000 barrels of crude oil per day from North Dakota’s fracking fields to Illinois. It would pass directly through the sacred lands of the Standing Rock Sioux tribe and under the Missouri River, the water source for thousands of people.
It is a direct threat to the life, rights, and water of the Standing Rock Sioux, who have been peacefully resisting its construction for months. They’ve since been joined by thousands of allies dedicated to peacefully protecting the water and standing up for Indigenous rights.
Greenpeace has been expressing our solidarity on the ground, providing supplies and capacity, and standing behind our Indigenous allies who have taken the lead in stopping a project that threatens their rights and way of life.
I am truly in awe of the strength and spirit Indigenous leaders have shown in the face of violent, repressive police response. It is thanks to them that the #NoDAPL movement has grown into the incredible example of peaceful resistance that it is today.
You’ve changed President Obama’s mind before. Remember the Keystone XL pipeline? We know that when thousands of people like you and me speak out, he listens.
Now we need him to listen to the voice of the people and say no to the Dakota Access Pipeline. Already, 36,000 people like you have signed on demanding President Obama revoke the pipeline permits — your voice could make the difference.
Now, we need to make sure it keeps growing until the Dakota Access Pipeline is STOPPED. Do your part by sending a message to President Obama today.
 Add your name today: tell President Obama that YOU stand with Standing Rock.
Annie Leonard is Executive Director, Greenpeace USA
How You Can Show Your Solidarity in
The Fight Against the Dakota Access Pipeline
Krystal Two Bulls / Voices of the Sacred & Greenpeace
(October 28, 2016) — The Red Warrior Camp calls on all people from around the world to take action and join their Global Solidarity Campaign against the Dakota Access Pipeline. If you live on this land, breathe the air, and drink water — this is your fight too.
Our Brothers, Sisters, and Protectors are putting their bodies and lives on the line everyday on the frontlines in Standing Rock, and we need as many of you on our side as we can get. We call upon all protectors to come stand with us. If you cannot be physically present, you can still take escalated action to stop the pipeline and support our struggle.
The Dakota Access Pipeline is scheduled to start operations January 1, 2017, when it will begin carrying almost 500,000 barrels of fracked oil from North Dakota to Illinois every day. With that date quickly approaching, we’re calling for two months of sustained waves of action targeting the Army Corp of Engineers (which issued the permits for construction of the pipeline), investors, pipeline companies, security firms, and elected officials pushing the project forward.
It’s up to all of us to hold these institutions, corporations, and individuals accountable and put a stop to this pipeline.
Everyone has a role to play in stopping the Dakota Access Pipeline. Check out our Global Solidarity Campaign to get the tools you need to show up in this fight. From participating in peaceful actions and protests near you to organizing your community to travel to Standing Rock, there are so many meaningful ways to get involved.
And I hope you will get involved, because in the end, this is your movement, too.
This fight is larger than Standing Rock. When the Dakota Access Pipeline is defeated, there is still so much work to be done. There are communities around the world fighting the same corporations and systems that we’re up against at Standing Rock.
This is about Indigenous rights, human rights and the rights of Mother Earth being violated for corporations and their profit. This is about a capitalist system that allows for these violations to continue at the expense of people around the world.
This is about recognizing that with the energy created at Standing Rock, those organizing at Standing Rock have a responsibility to uplift the shared struggles of all peoples if we wish to pass down a healthy world to future generations.
Even though we are being arrested and charged for simply protecting our water, we will not let that stop us. In fact, we’re taking back our power and charging the pipeline companies, banks, and individuals behind this project with crimes against humanity and crimes against Mother Earth.
The Dakota Access Pipeline is in direct violation of the United Nations’ Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, particularly with regard to the right to free and prior informed consent, desecration, redress, militarization, development, treaties, and judicial proceedings.
It’s also in direct violation of the United Nation’s Declaration of Universal Human Rights, especially with respect to the right to security of person and the right to not be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or punishment.
The sacredness and power of the water is what brought us together. It is what connects us. That is why we are asking people to use the hashtag #WorldWaterOne, www.www.www, when sharing online about your solidarity efforts against the pipeline.
Rise up to defeat the Dakota Access Pipeline! Find a solidarity action near you.
Krystal Two Bulls is an Oglala Lakota/Northern Cheyenne woman from Lame Deer, Montana. She organizes with the Red Warrior Camp out of Standing Rock and the Global #NoDAPL Solidarity Team. She is also the Director of Voices of the Sacred, an organization that focuses on the healing, empowerment and leadership development of Indigenous Peoples by addressing social, racial and environmental injustices. Twitter: @lakota_rain8.
Posted in accordance with Title 17, Section 107, US Code, for noncommercial, educational purposes.
