Indigenous Peoples' Day at Standing Rock

from RoZ:

 

I want to share the story about today’s dinner, served to the Water Protectors at Standing Rock in North Dakota. These are the people who are trying to stop the Dakota Access Pipeline DAPL from happening. This dinner was put together by people in the food world, and others from all over the country, to feed all the people who have gathered at Standing Rock. We honor and support this effort to stop the pipeline from destroying their sacred water and land, plus burial sites of their ancestors.

I’m not sure about the whole timeline of everything that happened to pull it all together, but I can tell you what I’ve read and done, along with a lot of other people, to help make it happen. Like many people, I’ve been staying informed about what’s happening to stop the DAPL and donated warm things for people who are staying out there all winter.

My first clue about the dinner was a story in our local paper about a woman, who is starting a new restaurant in the area. Someone that Adrian knows in Indiana, also in the restaurant world, mentioned that she was making soup to take out to Standing Rock for a Thanksgiving dinner. The woman was concerned about traveling out there with perishable ingredients to make the soup for 500-1000 people. She didn’t have refrigeration and it would be a long drive. Since she was coming through the area on her way there, Adrian offered not only space in the walk-ins overnight, but put the word out that she would ask the community to come help make dinner rolls for 1,000 people. I read about this last week and made the call to volunteer to come make rolls on Tuesday.

When I arrived I saw a couple other Berniecrats who were helping, too. There were probably about two dozen people working at one time. Several people were mixing the dough. There were three stainless tables where four people per table were making dinner rolls and putting them on a tray. Several people moved trays from these tables to the ovens, A couple more people worked the ovens. Adrian washed utensils in the sink while keeping an eye on the whole thing. There was a little background music, but it didn’t intrude on the great conversations that were going on. What a great way to build community and help the cause.

That evening I heard a story on NPR about a woman in Philadelphia, Judy Wicks, the founder of the White Dog Cafe, an early Farm to Table restaurant. She organized a 50-person brigade to provide a hearty Thanksgiving dinnerfor the water protectors, although she wasn’t sure if the Thanksgiving meal offer would be accepted since lots of native people consider it a day of mourning. She was reassured by a former Standing Rock tribal chairman that “everyone is welcome to be among us.” What began as one woman’s plan to feed about 500 people turned into a larger number of chefs and celebrities that are involved in the Wopila Feast (Wopila means thank you in Lakota). They are hoping to feed up to 10,000 people during the holiday weekend. That’s when I realized that those of making those dinner rolls were part of a movement to feed these wonderful people who are taking a stand to defend our Mother Earth.

There is another aspect to Standing Rock that also needs to be shared. While doing research online I came across this story about the building of MakagiOti – the Brown Earth Lodge. This is a straw bale structure that is being built as a community center and kitchen. The plan was to have it finished by this weekend for the feast, as a temporary structure until it is converted to a permanent structure in the spring.

Stopping the Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL) is important, and we need to thank these people who are literally putting their lives on the line to protect their sacred water, ancestors and land.

Please check out the links above and below, especially Ways to Help Standing Rock Water Protectors fight the good fight.

Stop the war on peaceful protestors

This plea for your money, outrage, and action from Mark Taylor of the (late) Daily Call:

Dear Friends:

As people gather for the Thanksgiving holiday there is a brutal obscenity being carried out in our name at the Standing Rock protests of the Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL) project in North Dakota.

Police forces have ramped up their brutality by dousing land and water protectors in streams of water in 22-degree temperatures, targeting people's faces with "non lethal" plastic bullets and intentionally targeting the testicles of men with the plastic bullets. Sadism has now overtaken the "law" enforcement drones doing the bidding of their corporate bosses in the oil industry.

Earlier this week a police fragmentation grenade nearly took off the lower arm of a 21 year-old young woman at the demonstrations. Police blocked ambulances from reaching those injured at the site (one could consider this a war crime). It took over 6 hours to get that grievously wounded young woman to medical care and despite the care she has received she may yet lose her arm.

The non-tribal police forces at Standing Rock have been clearly infected with a kind of mass evil - Native Americans refer to such a thing as Wetiko. (You can learn more about this phenomenon in a book by Paul Levy.)

The brutal irony of this state sanctioned violence on behalf of corporate interests during this week of the annual Thanksgiving celebration of the first gathering of Pilgrims and Native Americans is the height of national hypocrisy. (The Pilgrims would have starved to death but for the generosity of nearby tribes.)

Please consider making a donation to the Sacred Stone Legal Defense Fund to make it possible for some level of representation and sliver of justice for our brothers and sisters who are facing the state-sponsored brutality being carried out in our name.

If your local law enforcement agency is participating in the genocidal abuses in North Dakota make it known you do not approve of your tax money being used for oppression of fellow citizens. 

To local, state and federal law enforcement officials involved in this ongoing travesty know that we recognize your abusive behavior as the fascism it is. What you are doing and the sickness in which you act has nothing to do with "protecting and serving" the citizens you have taken an oath to protect. You have aligned yourself with criminals; you do the work of criminals. You bring shame on your departments, defile our Constitution and we citizens see you for what you are: the forces of fascism.

For an update on the situation in North Dakota and a powerful interview with the father of that maimed young woman go to: http://www.commondreams.org/news/2016/11/23/people-are-going-die-father-wounded-dapl-activist-sophia-wilansky-speaks-out

Democracy Now! has a good Standing Rock update at: https://www.democracynow.org/2016/11/24/standing_rock_special_unlicensed_dapl_guards

Please pass this appeal on to your contacts.

Please, friends, do not compound the injustice being perpetrated this holiday weekend by ignoring what is happening; we cannot turn away. An injustice to one is injustice to all and silence in the face of injustice is consent. 

Please join me in making a donation of any amount you can afford to the Standing Rock legal defense fund.

My thanks to all of you.

In solidarity,

Mark L. Taylor

Last night, some local Dems became upset when some other local Dems tried to elect a board that was slightly different from the old board. The "new" Dems' slate included four people who are already on the board, one person who was on the board last year, two people who are long time Dems and Dem canvassers, and one "new" Dem, articulate and experienced in environmental and social justice campaigns, who was elected to be a delegate at the national convention in July.

This slate was hardly a nudge from the status quo, but, while the old Dems say they understand the need to "reach out" to others, apparently what they mean is that they will seek new ways to market top down ideas to those who have dropped off the bandwagon, but they do not want to make changes in the leadership that has been driving people off the wagon in the first place. We'll reach out. You stay over there.

My opinion.

What if instead of having parties for every occasion, the party went to, listened to, learned from, and invited current non-party voters to join? If people are invested in a group - are important parts of the process whose experiences and ideas are respected and listened to, and who are welcomed to help plan and lead - then no amount of Koch brothers' money can turn them into against-their-interests voters.

What if people from the diverse communities of the county were invited to JOIN the party and help shape the programs, platforms, and agendas instead of just invited as speakers?

What if the party supported and facilitated community forums so people could voice their greatest concerns and suggest ways to equitably address them? And those plans could become part of the party's platform and part of candidates' priorities?

Last night's meeting seemed like a very minor attempt to slightly adjust the bent and focus of the local leadership to begin to address some of the issues identified at every level of the Dem party.  (See Paul Soglin's analysis, for example).

If we must be hostages on a party bus (and apparently we must as anyone who runs as or votes for a "third party" candidate quickly learns), and if both are driving toward the cliff, isn't it imperative for the captive passengers to try influencing the speed and trajectory of the bus they're on?

Here is a very good article about including people (even seeming to include people) and the consequences of not.

http://commondreams.org/views/2016/11/21/listening-trump

Dec. 1 at Wells Fargo

In case you missed it, private contractors related to Blackwater and "law enforcement" officers attacked peaceful protestors on unceded Sioux land with water cannons, rubber bullets, and mace in sub-freezing weather today.

Amy Goodman has it covered on Democracy Now!

So,

Dear fellow DAPL protestors,

Another protest is being organized for Thursday, December 1 at Wells Fargo Bank in downtown La Crosse.  Please see event information below and RSVP if you can attend.  Please share event link with your friends and on Social Media!  Thank YOU!

https://actionnetwork.org/events/day-of-action-divestfromdapl?zipcode=54601&country=US

On November 20, the police violently attacked peaceful water protectors at Standing Rock. Police used tear gas, rubber bullets, pepper spray, sound grenades, and sprayed them with water cannons in subfreezing conditions. Hundreds of people were injured.

In response a coalition of groups at Standing Rock are calling a Global Day of Action on December 1st.  The main targets are financiers of the Dakota Access Pipeline and the police departments that have been brought in from across the Midwest to brutalize water protectors.

The financial footing of the Dakota Access Pipeline is in jeopardy if they do not complete the project by January 1st. If this deadline is missed, a majority of the stakeholders with contracts to ship oil through the pipeline will be able to renegotiate or cancel their contracts. This could be devastating to Energy Transfer Partners and the other pipeline companies behind DAPL.

With its vulnerabilities exposed, our solidarity efforts are needed now more than ever.

#NoDAPL #DivestFromDAPL

Please note:
Due to the short amount of time to organize this will not be a programmed protest with speakers. We will gather and take part in a walking protest with signage and pass out informational fliers to Wells Fargo customers and pedestrians.  It would be great to have people sign up for shifts so we can stage an all-day protest from 9am - 5pm.  Please indicate which time period you'll be attending on your RSVP.

Bernie on Thom Hartmann

Bernie will be a guest on the Thom Hartmann show for 1/2 - 1 hour Wednesday morning. Thom’s show runs from 11am-2pm CT, and he’s been telling listeners that Bernie would be on during the first hour.

For many years, Thom hosted a “Brunch With Bernie” segment every Friday at 11, where Bernie would take calls and answer questions from listeners. This is how we (and many other people) became familiar with Bernie. 

This will be Bernie’s first appearance on Thom’s show since (AFAIK) before the conventions.

“Listen live” page is here: http://www.thomhartmann.com/radio/listen-live