Standing Rock Update
anthony D. Romero
On Sunday, just hours before the evacuation notice for the main protest camp at Standing Rock was to take effect, the Army Corps of Engineers denied a permit for the Dakota Access Pipeline to drill under the Missouri River – halting the pipeline construction.
This is a testament to the organizing power and resilience of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe, whose members have been fighting to protect their water and defend their sovereignty for more than nine months.
Over a quarter million ACLU supporters joined this fight. More than 250,000 of you called on the Department of Justice to demilitarize the police force confronting the nonviolent protesters and investigate possible constitutional violations. Over 46,000 of you sent a message to the Corps telling them not to silence free speech and shut down the biggest encampment at Standing Rock.
This fight is not over yet. The Corps must now consider alternate pipeline routes and will need to complete an Environmental Impact Statement, which could take months or years. The Standing Rock Sioux and other tribal leadership will continue to be key participants in this process.
We will continue to pressure the Department of Justice to hold police fully accountable for civil rights abuses committed against water protectors – including the many hundreds who have been detained and face criminal charges.
And we’ll continue to be vigilant should the Trump administration move to authorize construction on the pipeline.
For the moment, we celebrate this victory. And we will continue to fight to protect the rights of protesters, at Standing Rock and beyond.
Thank you for all that you have done,
Anthony for the ACLU Action team
P.S. The father of an ACLU of South Dakota staff member, Jen Peterson, wrote a moving blog post: “Why I Joined My Fellow Vets at Standing Rock This Weekend.” It’s a great story.