Corporate America’s greed knows no bounds and destroying sacred burial grounds and risking the water supply of tens of millions of Americans is simply the cost of doing their business. But while the judge has decided not to stop the pipeline, the Justice Department, Dept of Interior and Army Corps of Engineers has asked that the pipeline not cross federal land. A huge win and proof that our voices matter. But this isn’t over. It is going to take action, our action to stop it because sometimes, enough really is enough. For more….
Before the discussion of the Standing Rock protest I want to remind all of you that for us to really build a statewide network of progressives, we need to stay active and this link will take you to Thursday’s blog with options for taking local action and if you do nothing else, please reach out to one or two friends and ask them to sign up to get involved. We have about 150 folks now, but we need to double or triple that number…and quickly….to have a real impact on this election. Heads up that there is phone banking to support progressive Democrats across the state on T and Th from 5-8pm at the Center for Progress & Justice, 1420 Cerrillos, Santa Fe and at the same venue on Th, the 15th from 6-7pm State Sen. Peter Wirth and Paul Gibson will give a training on working with Legislators and researching and reporting on legislation. All welcome. Lastly, the www.retaketheroundhouse.org site has lots of resources for taking actions, e.g. contact info for protesting PNM’s obscene rate hike and contact info for 16 targeted state races. So use it as a resource.
Retake the Roundhouse is primarily focused upon New Mexico and its political arena. However, periodically a national issue warrants being shared. So just as I devoted time to the TPPa couple weeks ago, see The TPP in Brief, today we shift our focus to North Dakota and the protest of the proposed Dakota Access pipeline which is essentially a reiteration of the Keystone XL pipeline. For an excellent summary of what the Dakota Access is, who is funding it and why the proposal has ignited a national protest, click here.
But while the article linked above is a good summary, Thursday night’s DemocracyNow interview with LaDonna Brave Bull Allard, the historian for the Standing Rock Sioux tribe was extraordinarily moving and put this protest in a historic context. The link to this video is provided here. She describes not just the current protest but the history of genocide against the Dakota Sioux perpetrated by the US militia. It is heart-wrenching.
This protest embodies all that a progressive movement is about, it is about lifting our voices against a corporate structure that places short-term profits ahead of people and the planet. And it is time to draw a line in the sand. So please click Ten Things You Can Do to Support the Standing Rock Sioux Protest and take action.
Categories: Indigenous Rights
Incredible that an arrest warrant has been issued for Amy Goodman, guilty of interviewing the protectors. Can’t have any information get out that would generate sympathy for the Native Americans. Guess fossil fuel industry toady Gov. Dalrymple believes the First Amendment applies only in situations he and his owners approve.
On Sun, Sep 11, 2016 at 12:08 PM, Retake the Roundhouse wrote:
> paulgibson51 posted: “Corporate America’s greed knows no bounds and > destroying sacred burial grounds and risking the water supply of tens of > millions of Americans is simply the cost of doing their business. But > while the judge has decided not to stop the pipeline, the Justice” >
Standing Rock Sioux. Blessings for your courage and tenacity. Thank you for reminding us we have to take a stand everyday for our quality of life. We are all in this together, please do not forget that!