Dakota Water Wars, Chapter 20: Codifying Tribal Water Rights

At the Great Plains Tribal Water Alliance 2023 Winter Water and Climate Conference, keynote speaker Wes Martel from the Greater Yellowstone Coalition discusses the importance of codifying water rights so tribes can assert their priorities, preserve their sovereignty, and protect Unci Maka, our Grandmother Earth.

Chapter 1: United Against DAPL

With organizing help from the Great Plains Tribal Water Alliance, Standing Rock Nation leads a gathering to strategize about the best approach to stopping the DAPL.

Chapter 2: Honor the Treaties

Hundreds of years of colonization — forced migration, broken treaties, flooding our territory, and the refusal to return our homelands — has led us to this moment. We won’t stop fighting for what is right, for our People and for Unci Maka, our Grandmother Earth. Honor the treaties.

Chapter 3: Money Against a Prayer

DAPL threatens Standing Rock’s sole source of fresh drinking water, transporting more than a million barrels of oil per day under the Mni Sose, the sacred Missouri River, all without a valid permit. Meanwhile, to legally sweat in certain places at the river’s edge, Native People are required to have … a permit. The contrast couldn’t be more clear. That’s why we must stay strong and keep fighting.

Chapter 4: Free, Prior, and Informed Consent

Neither the oil company nor the U.S. government cares that Native people never gave our consent for DAPL. In the U.S., the standard for moving forward on such projects is “tribal consultation,” but in practice, that’s not a standard at all. Simply sending us an email isn't consent. We insist on a higher standard, one that values our perspective and doesn’t subjugate our people based on meaningless words from the colonizers’ handbook.

Chapter 5: Ignoring Tribes, Ignoring Laws

In this chapter, we explore the disconnect between what’s happened with the pipeline — its illegal operation and crossing just to the north of Standing Rock under the Mni Sose — and what should have been done. Bottom line: DAPL should not be operating without Tribal consent and full compliance with the law.

Chapter 6: I Can Still See It

South Dakota tribal leaders explore the spiritual power of the #NoDAPL movement and the way it has brought tribes together from all over the country in support of Unci Maka, our Grandmother Earth.

Chapter 7: Delegation to D.C.

Standing Rock Sioux Tribe Chairwoman Janet Alkire leads an important delegation to Washington, D.C. to visit with Senate and congressional leaders, including Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib.

Chapter 8: Taking Our Truth to D.C.

While in D.C., Standing Rock Sioux Tribe Chairwoman Janet Alkire tells it like it is: In order to win justice in the fight against DAPL, Washington’s leaders must face hard truths and find compassion for the tribe and all others threatened by this illegal, dangerous pipeline.

Chapter 9: Conflict of Interest

Legal and technical experts discuss how putting a Big Oil-affiliated firm in charge of DAPL’s environmental review creates a rigged process with a predetermined outcome that ignores tribal concerns.

Chapter 10: Sacrifice Zones

Let's talk about a paradise lost. Medicinal plants and the vast majority of wildlife and timber are among the terrible sacrifices tribes like Standing Rock were forced to make as the Missouri River was dammed seven times since the 1940s.

Chapter 11: Worst Case Discharge

We look at the oil company’s refusal to honestly address the worst case scenario when the Dakota Access pipeline inevitably leaks under increased capacity. As demonstrated Dec. 8 after the Keystone pipeline increased its flow, pipelines grow more devastating when they carry more oil — with real consequences for the land, animals, and people.

Chapter 12: 1868 Treaty: Supreme Law of the Land

The 1868 Treaty of Fort Laramie provided the Lakota water rights to the Mni Sose — the Missouri River. Today, mining projects and other interests look to divert our water, even as the climate crisis threatens not just our homelands, but all of Unci Maka, our Grandmother Earth.

Chapter 13: Bad Man Clause

The tribes consider a legal offensive. DAPL parent company Energy Transfer's horrendous safety track record means it should be kicked off sacred lands based on Article One of the 1868 Treaty of Fort Laramie — otherwise known as the Bad Man Clause.

Chapter 14: Standing Strong Together

Take a look inside a recent meeting with tribal representatives and water protectors, highlighting the Oceti Sakowin's plan to take aggressive legal and public action to end DAPL. By standing strong together with unity and purpose, we can still defeat the Black Snake.

Chapter 15: Perpetual Delays for DAPL EIS

In meetings with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, tribal leaders take them to task for their endless delay in releasing DAPL’s long-overdue draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS).

Dakota Water Wars, Chapter 16: Turbid Waters

In a meeting with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Standing Rock leaders call out the Corps' mismanagement of the Missouri River and the consequences that has — both realized and potential — for the Standing Rock Nation.

Chapter 17: #NoDAPL Origins

Hear about the origins, history, and motivations of Standing Rock's #NoDAPL movement, and look back to the formation of the resistance camps through the eyes of those who were there.

Chapter 18: No Transparency = No Democracy

Two tribal chairpersons testify during a meeting with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers on DAPL’s deeply flawed draft Environmental Impact Statement. Standing Rock Water Resources Director and Great Plains Tribal Water Alliance Chair Doug Crow Ghost also shows us redacted emergency response plans provided to the tribe by the Corps, emblematic of an undemocratic process that lacks transparency and puts people at risk.

Dakota Water Wars, Chapter 19: A Unified Front

Standing Rock Chair Janet Alkire gives context on her trip to Washington, D.C. for the White House Tribal Nations Summit, and U.S. Sen. Jeff Merkley joins the Standing Rock Nation to host a press conference calling for environmental justice and an end to this illegal pipeline.