Jeanne —
When I decided to respond to the call from Indigenous leaders to support the fight against Line 3, I knew I might be arrested. What I didn’t know was that thousands of us would respond, that helicopters would be weaponized against us, or that we’d camp last night in a wild rainstorm with tornado warnings throughout the area.
There’s no shortage of Indigenous-led action in northern Minnesota this week. At one site yesterday, there was a takeover of Enbridge’s pumphouse and the construction site where they plan to run the pipe. Dozens of people locked down to construction equipment, hundreds swarmed the site, and there were several blockades of the roadway. At the other site, thousands marched to the Mississippi headwaters for a water ceremony, and there’s now a camp with about 200 people holding that site, and calling on President Biden to stop Line 3.
This is an incredible week — but it’s just one moment in a struggle for their land, water, and wild rice that Anishinaabe and other leaders have been fighting for seven years. They’ve put out a call for people to support them all through the summer. Please join if you can; if you can’t, here’s what you can do to support:
- Donate to the bail fund for the Treaty People Gathering
- Tell President Biden to stop Line 3
- Retweet this tweet and share these posts
There are over 50 of us here from Seattle now, including Protectors of the Salish Sea, and I know I speak for many when I say I wish I could stay longer and do more. Tar sands development is a disaster for the whole world, and Line 3 is an egregious injustice against the tribes of Northern Minnesota. Please support this struggle in any way you can. I promise you: it’s deeply satisfying to get away from Zoom meetings and into a struggle for the beauty of this land and these waters, and for the survival of the people and other beings who live here.
In solidarity,
Val
PS That helicopter? It’s part of Customs and Border Patrol, apparently taking time off from separating families in order to harass the original people of this land. Which reminds me…please join us for “Free the Land, Free the People” on Sunday in Tacoma at noon!
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