Last year, I found myself compelled to travel over 2,300 miles, unarmed, to a frontline that I knew would be hostile and well equipped against my arrival. Surrounded by a people I did not know, and having travelled well beyond the familiar horizon of North Carolina that I currently call home, I entered North Dakota. On the banks of the Missouri River there's a camp named Oceti Sakowin, an ancient collective title for the Tribes of Lakota, Dakota, and Nakota peoples. Within this historic gathering of First Nations people and non-natives alike, I encountered a generosity and unconditional compassion that was unknown to me before that first night. Oceti Sakowin was a spiritual calling that brought together people of every ethnicity, spoken language, and political stance. For that week, after having been welcomed by the Sioux to call my tent site home, I witnessed the United States’ potential. I viscerally saw our zenith and experienced the vision of our forefathers. I understood our nation’s original aspirations with a level of intimacy I never even knew I was missing. As it turned out, however, just beyond the Oceti Sakowin camp was another side of this nation, a greed ridden potential for cruelty that, unfortunately for us, is far more powerful and wealthy. The Sioux call this enemy the “Black Snake.” And like so many other great evils, it goes by many names. You might be more familiar with one in particular, Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL).
Native American society is a unique blending of the old and modern world, it stands in stark contrast to modern America. The incompatibility of these two differing paths of Structural-Functional development, is probably what led to the Social-Conflict that I found myself facing. This idea is captured quite accurately by BJ Kidder, who spoke of a conversation with his father, stating “My Dad said all the people are going to come together from everywhere, ‘not to wage war,’” (2), but instead “to see how we’re destroying Mother Earth,” (2). This belief has led many in the reservation community to believe they are on the precipice of great change. Despite a past that has remained viscous in the memories of those whose rights and way of life have been repeatedly curtailed and oppressed, despite nationally recognized independence and sovereignty. This notion, as it turns out, is most accurate with those not burdened by such old scars: the children of the reservations.
Native American Youth were and continue to be a driving force for progressive momentum among America’s First Nations in the fight against DAPL. While she believes this is partly due to the technological literacy of the latest generation, Braun believes the protest’s initial spark and continued presence is due to the engagement of native youth in traditions and religious practices of their honored elders. Braun informs me that the origin of this protest started with the simple act of resurrecting a centuries old tradition called “Crow Hop” (6), a long distance relay race whose origin can be traced to wartime message runners. This rediscovery would eventually carry the reservation’s petition against the DAPL project more than 2,500 miles from the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation in North Dakota to the steps of the White House in the nation’s capital: Washington, D.C. This willingness to peacefully endure suffering through faith and prayer has reverberated and inspired many to action in the nation, including myself.
Two of the most striking characteristics of this protest have been its longevity and massive national support. Standing Rock has inspired tens of thousands of people, hundreds of organizations and cities, stretching the full breadth of the United States. It has also drawn attention from foreign tribes and First Nations. From Inuits in Alaska to the Maya in Central and South America. From Australian Aboriginals to the Tribes of Israel. According to Jose Aguto, his people are actively defining their national character and identity, and this affords them a unique opportunity to elevate themselves in a position of leadership and example for the nation at large. It's Aguto’s opinion that this is why people started to join their cause. A people’s cultural character is shaped by the lands in which they inhabit, like a crucible it will either strengthen or consume them. Having shared a home, meals, stories, and pain with these people facing seemingly insurmountable odds, I can agree with Gass. I have witnessed a spiritual strength that cannot be quantified.
The Standing Rock Sioux honored me with the opportunity to join my own blood, sweat, and tears amongst the sacred sites and bones of their ancestors. I saw this revival with my own eyes, heard the spiritual songs and sacred drums with my own ears, and felt the frigid winter with my own flesh and frost bitten breath. Natives young and old are hopeful that their adherence to peace in the face of hostility will serve as an example to the nation, that their words and songs will be heard far beyond Oceti Sakowin. Until then, I will carry them within my own chest; casting them aloft to a hopeful wind with my every breath.