Eric Sherman - What The Dakota Access Pipeline Protest Says About Race And The Sad State Of American Democracy
We are witnessing a
critical moment of resistance in Standing Rock. Over 200 tribes have coalesced, uniting
in peaceful protest. Thousands of people have come together to ask only for
what is theirs ― land and water, yes, but also basic human rights. They
demonstrate because their sacred home has been routinely and callously violated
by a profit-hungry, colonial machine.
Colonization still
thrives in America. It simply cleverly hides behind the glossy PR of opaque,
faceless corporations. The Dakota Access Pipeline is a literal tentacle that
reaches deep into the pristine, but untapped natural resources of the vast
Bakken Formation, leeching oil to the unquenchable refineries of south Texas.
Death to the colonized happens more slowly than 200 years ago, but just as
inevitably, as communities relegated to the surrounding reservations are
excluded from access to quality health care, non-toxic surroundings, and economic
opportunity.
Be cautioned that the
media will inevitably condemn and vilify the violence that has escalated and
assign blame to the protesters for disturbing the status quo. We saw the same
reaction in Ferguson, Missouri following the shooting of Michael Brown in 2014and in Baltimore after Freddie Gray’s death in 2015. This escalation comes
not from protesters, but from our heavily militarized police force’s arrival.
In all three instances, the dystopian images of men in riot gear facing unarmed
men, women and children is deeply troubling. This is state violence against the
poor and powerless, plain and simple. In Standing Rock, we see cool steel
pointed at supple feathers. The metaphor is clear and powerful.
We must connect these
acts of defiance and resistance in our minds and in the current American
narrative. Our distorted and unchecked capitalism allows for the destruction of
sacred land, the violation of black bodies and the cannibalizing of our own
citizens. This event does not occur in isolation, but joins the recent string of
attempts by the poor and politically disenfranchised to bravely stand up to a
faceless, powerful, and ever-hungry capitalism. One that lumbers forward
seeking only profit and leaves in its wake total destruction. The politically
neglected, yet savvy and noble, are using their number, which has been proven
time and time again to be a powerful and singular tool against exploitation.
We still hesitate to
invoke race in these cases, choosing instead any other specious reason for
state violence. Standing Rock exposes, yet again, systematic oppression and
state sanctioned violence against black and brown folks in the U.S. So, for
contrast, I will urge you to revisit the armed occupation by white militants of the Malheur National
Wildlife Refuge earlier this year. A “peaceful resolution” was given
highest priority by the FBI, for the safety of the armed terrorists and for the
police involved. Leader Ammon Bundy was not arrested until after provocation
from the public, following lengthy negotiations with FBI. Arrests were
eventually made, but the seven primary defendants in the case were all
acquitted of primary charges.
The protest in
Standing Rock is critical and pivotal in our national fight for greater
justice. It shows that all lives do not matter in the United States. It shows
that capitalism can rape our natural resources and cannibalize our own citizens
unchecked for profit. It shows that political dissent is met with state
violence. And as a result, we should deeply interrogate and resist our
democracy that allows for these perversions of justice.
