Letter to Editor | Hope and Horror at Standing Rock

—  from Marlia Starwater —

There’s still a chance, from now through May 6, to see this extremely powerful documentary, “Awake, A Dream From Standing Rock,” which I saw at Odd Fellows Hall in Eastsound on Sunday night. It’s available HERE for a donation of $1 or more.

The film dramatically shows what happened at the water protectors’ camps at Standing Rock in North Dakota.

Many of us on Orcas Island sent clothing, food, funds, and went ourselves, to support the Native Americans and make clear the message that we were vehemently against the Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL), and knew that the greed of the corporations needed to be stopped. We need to protect people’s cultures, our drinking water, and all the natural systems that support our health and our lives.

At Standing Rock, there was not violence against the police, who wrought violence on the water protectors who were sending peaceful prayers, songs, and drumbeats of solidarity to protect the drinking water for more than 10 million people along the Missouri River.

The documentary has several parts, each with a tone of its own. It is perhaps for some too educational and historically correct. In the beginning of the film I had difficulty understanding some of the words – but by the end, it is quite clear that the world has changed some due to the sacrifice of many people who spiritually stood up. They suffered sub-freezing cold and sometimes inhumane treatment (attack dogs, water cannons, rubber bullets) in order to protect our planet and the life-giving water.

There have been hundreds of rallies, across the U.S. and beyond, in support of Standing Rock, encouraging renewable energy and ending our use of fossil fuel. Hundreds of pipeline accidents across our nation have resulted in pollution, loss of clean water, and unsafe living conditions.

In order to help support renewable energy and end gas and oil pipelines, one of the most effective things we can do is divest from the banks that support these corporations and their fossil fuel projects. We can move our money out of banks such as Wells Fargo, Bank of America, Citibank, and several others. For more information, you can visit www.defunddapl.org. On this website, you’ll find alternatives to using the big banks. For example, you can replace your Wells Fargo or Bank of America credit card with a credit union credit card.

May we all have the strength and motivation to do what’s needed right now for our health and wellbeing, and so the sacrifices that the people made Standing Rock may not have been in vain.