Fort Yates, ND – On October 23, 2017, the Bureau of Indian Affairs murdered 35-year-old Ryan Gipp after he was pulled over outside of Fort Yates, North Dakota. Gipp and his parents were returning home from a hunting trip and stopped at a gas station. Gipp was ejecting a shell from his shotgun, when it accidentally discharged. The family began to drive home and was pulled over by BIA officers shortly after. Gipp threw the only weapon in the vehicle, his shotgun, out the window in an effort to play it safe and present himself unarmed. BIA officers Raymond Webb and Gary Sandland Jr. then tased and shot Gipp several times. The two officers were not charged and are still in their current positions, but Gipp's family continues to fight for justice.

On Saturday, November 7, organizers from Native Lives Matter, Gipp's family, and other community members and activists gathered at the site of Gipp's death alongside the highway. Gipp's brother Henry spoke about bringing awareness to the battle they are fighting against the police, the BIA and the government.

“We know this battle. We saw what happened to Breonna Taylor, and she's not getting justice either,” said Henry Gipp. “The fight has just begun. We have to stand up like our warrior ancestors did. We have to protect our women and our children. We have to show our children that we're not scared. We have to be out here, we have to speak our truth. We've got to make sure people know that Native lives matter!”

After rallying at the site of Gipp's death the group caravanned to Fort Yates and held space at the original burial site of Sitting Bull, a Native leader also murdered by police. A list of Native stolen lives was read aloud that included Billie Hughes, Paul Castaway, Jonathon Tubby, the Dakota uprising, Sitting Bull, and the Dakota 38 as activists held their fists in their air in solidarity. The crowd then marched through Fort Yates holding space at the police station and the Standing Rock BIA office. Several residents joined the march to support the Gipp family as the group marched through the community.

Gipp's family has filed lawsuits against the U.S. government and the two BIA officers who killed him. They are calling for the case to be re-opened and reviewed by an independent investigation team. They are also seeking $15 million in damages for Gipp's three children.

#FortYatesND #PeoplesStruggles #IndigenousPeoples #PoliceBrutality #StandingRock #RyanGipp

Canon Ball, ND – A roar of celebration spread through Camp Oceti Sakawin at Standing Rock as the water protectors and their supporters learned that the Dakota Access Pipeline had been stopped in its tracks.

The Army Corp of Army Engineers denied the pipeline company an easement permit and will begin a new environmental impact study. An alternative route will be considered. This occurred a day before the threatened eviction of the camp and the day that thousands of veterans from around the country answered the call to stand with Standing Rock.

Barry Riesch, of Vets for Peace Chapter 27 who organized the Twin Cities veterans’ contingent that traveled to Standing Rock, said, “This is true service to the American people.”

#CanonBallND #PeoplesStruggles #IndigenousPeoples #DAPL #StandingRock #NorthDakota #WaterProtectors #WaterIsLife #NorthDakotaAccessPipeline #NoDAPL

Canon Ball, ND – Resistance to the $3.8 billion Dakota Access Pipeline continues to grow. The Standing Rock Sioux, members of hundreds of tribes from around the country, as well as non-Natives have gathered to stop the pipeline.

The pipeline, which is scheduled to run under the Missouri River less than a mile north of the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation, extends 1134 miles and connects the Bakken and Three Forks production areas in North Dakota to Patoka, Illinois. It is projected to transport 450,000 barrels of crude oil per day along this route.

If completed, the pipeline would destroy more sacred burial sites. A leak in the pipeline will pollute the river and poison the people at Standing Rock as well as millions downstream. Furthermore, this represents a continued and expanded use of fossil fuels rather than a shift to environmentally friendly energy like wind or solar.

On Nov. 3, demonstrators put out a call to “make our way to the river” for a “river action.” Water protectors, as they call themselves, built a bridge across the Cantapeta Creek to be able to get to the sacred burial sites on the other side to pray. Despite a heroic and prolonged effort to save the bridge, it was destroyed by law enforcement in boats. Then at least 60 protectors swam across the creek. They stood in the cold water up against a line of 100 police in riot gear who peppered sprayed and tear gassed them.

Supporters on the other side chanted “the whole world is watching.” During the three-hour confrontation, 100 were injured. According to the camp medics 60 were treated for hypothermia, many for pepper spray and at least two for wounds from rubber bullets, including a journalist doing an interview.

The following day, Nov. 4, over 500 clergy from around the world, representing many faiths, came to the camp to stand in solidarity with the Standing Rock tribe. Before walking to the police blockade closest to the pipeline building site to pray, sing and speak, they burned the Doctrine of Discovery, a religious document issued in the 1400s sanctioning the taking of lands from indigenous people.

That afternoon, 100 of the clergy and supporters traveled to Bismarck, where they went to the state house and the governor’s mansion. When the governor refused to meet with them and they refused to leave, 14 were arrested and held in jail overnight.

Supporters continue to answer the call to come stand in solidarity with the Standing Rock Sioux tribe who are committed to stay as long as it takes to stop the pipeline.

#CanonBallND #PeoplesStruggles #IndigenousPeoples #Protest #oil #EnvironmentalJustice #Antiracism #StandingRock #IndigenousRights