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Delivering supplies to protest camp could warrant $1,000 fine
29
November, 2016
Anyone
delivering supplies to the main protest camp in Morton County could
be subject to a $1,000 fine for violating the emergency evacuation
order, but a local minister said this will not deter her church from
providing support.
"It's
cold out, really cold, and people need our help. Solidarity doesn't
stop when the warm weather stops," minister Karen Van Fossen, of
the Bismarck-Mandan Unitarian Universalist Congregation, wrote in an
email Tuesday.
"As
people of faith and conviction, we are committed to peaceful,
prayerful solidarity with Standing Rock. If supplies are needed to
survive the long winter, we will do our best to provide them,"
she said.
Van
Fossen has delivered supplies to the Oceti Sakowin camp and hosted
prayers and informational sessions over the past several months. The
church is raising funds to put a winterized yurt there, according to
an online fundraiser.
"We
have been a Bismarck-Mandan drop off site for supplies for many
months. Local folks have donated everything from diapers to sleeping
bags to winterized tents to snack crackers. It has been our honor to
carry these items to Standing Rock," she said.
Maxine
Herr, spokeswoman for the Morton County Sheriff's Department, said
law enforcement is "being observant" of vehicles heading
down county roads near the camp and could potentially pull over
vehicles suspected of delivering supplies to the camp, which Gov.
Jack Dalrymple ordered to be evacuated on Monday. Herr said officers
will warn people carrying goods to camp that they could be subject to
an infraction with a maximum penalty of $1,000.
"The
spirit of it is public safety," Herr said. "It's not safe
for them to be down there in those conditions."
A
spokesman for the governor said the evacuation order was made with
"no intention to block supplies going to the camp."
"The
governor signed this evacuation order out of concern for the safety
of those that are down there at that camp," said Jeff Zent,
spokesman for Dalrymple. "(He) had no intention to create some
sort of supply blockade."
Herr
said there had not been reports of law enforcement stopping such
vehicles as of Tuesday afternoon. There are no plans for a roadblock
on Highway 6, the main road to the camp since the Backwater Bridge on
Highway 1806 was closed in October, she said.
Herr
indicated that prohibited supplies include "anything that goes
to sustain living there," including wood, food and blankets. She
said the rule applies equally to individuals and businesses ferrying
supplies to the camp.
"They
need to evacuate," Herr said. "The executive order is clear
that it’s public safety. If they ignore it, they have to live with
the consequences of potentially freezing to death."
A
representative of the American Civil Liberties Union of North Dakota
objected Tuesday to the governor’s evacuation order and said the
organization is considering litigation.
Jennifer
Cook, policy director, said while the governor says safety is the
reason for the evacuation order, it’s contradictory to order the
evacuation during a winter storm and to restrict people’s access to
food and supplies.
“It’s
a broad order and the enforcement of it is a major concern for the
safety and the well-being of the people in the area,” said Cook,
adding she has concerns about people’s rights being violated if
motorists are cited for delivering supplies to the camp.
“There
are a lot of constitutional concerns,” Cook said.
Dalrymple
issued the mandatory emergency evacuation order Monday to the
hundreds of Dakota Access Pipeline protesters camping on U.S. Army
Corps of Engineers' land near the Missouri River. The edict was given
as a winter storm has dumped at least a half foot of snow throughout
the central part of the state. It followed an order by the corps that
the land will be closed to the public on Monday.
The
governor's order means that emergency services will not be made
available to people at the camp except on a case-by-case basis. The
order is effective since Monday and will remain until he rescinds it.
In
a statement Monday night, Standing Rock Tribal Chairman Dave
Archambault II called the order "a menacing action meant to
cause fear and is a blatant attempt by the state and local officials
to usurp and circumvent federal authority."
"The
governor cites harsh weather conditions and the threat to human life.
As I have stated previously, the most dangerous thing we can do is
force well-situated campers from their shelters and into the cold,"
Archambault said.
ND Gov. Orders Evac Days Before Veterans Descend on Standing Rock
NATIONAL (VFB) — In a move to prevent further support of the Standing Rock protests near Cannon Ball, late Monday afternoon North Dakota Gov. Jack Dalrymple ordered an “emergency evacuation” of the growing Dakota Access Pipeline protest camp sites.
To the protestors, many of whom are Native American, the Governor warned (in proclamation form, no less) “WHEREAS, winter conditions have the potential to endanger human life, especially when they are exposed to these conditions without proper shelter, dwellings, or sanitation for prolonged periods of time.”
The executive order comes just days before thousands of military veterans are scheduled to descend on the Standing Rock to show solidarity with protestors against what many view as a brutal, overhanded crackdown on 1st Amendment rights, among other things.
Air Force Staff Sgt. Tyler Phibbs was present the night of November 20, 2016, when riot police launched their most heavy handed assault against Water Protectors, firing water cannons, flash bang grenades, 40 mm rubber bullets, and tear gas canisters in subzero temperatures.
“My heart aches for the Natives and how they, once again, are being treated inhumanely over what is rightfully theirs,” Phibbs recounted.
N. Oceti Sakowin camp (Nov. 20, 2016)
Adam Easterly, a former Marine Corps Staff Sergeant and decorated combat Veteran, added, “This is fucking bullshit,” and “the Government’s violence will never outlive our ability to protest peacefully.”
Notable Veteran for Bernie, Rep. Tulsi Gabbard, is one of the few lawmakers to speak out on the issue, saying “It’s troubling that so many are ignoring what is happening to the people in Standing Rock.”
Despite the Governor’s order, a VetsForBernie.org contingency is returning to standing rock this weekend, along with Phibbs and Easterly. The group is raising funds to give to campers for supplies to last through the winter.
If you can, PLEASE CONTRIBUTE HERE.
Standing Rock protestors served eviction notice as temperatures drop below zero
North
Dakota Governor Jack Dalrymple has issued an executive order for
protesters to evacuate a campsite near the Dakota Access Pipeline.
Concerns of harsh winter and lack of sanitation were cited as reasons
for protesters to leave and not return, but as the environmental
group Greenpeace points out: the governor showed no concerns for
safety when protesters were being shot with rubber bullets. RT
America's Simone Del Rosario reports.
Veterans to Serve as ‘Human Shields’ for Dakota Pipeline Protesters
As
many as 2,000 veterans planned to gather next week at the Standing
Rock Sioux Reservation in North Dakota to serve as “human shields”
for protesters who have for months clashed with the police over the
construction of an oil pipeline, organizers said.
The
effort, called Veterans Stand for Standing Rock, is planned as a
nonviolent intervention to defend the demonstrators from what the
group calls “assault and intimidation at the hands of the
militarized police force.”
The
veterans’ plan coincides with an announcement on Tuesday by law
enforcement officials that they may begin imposing fines to block
supplies from entering the main protest camp after a mandatory
evacuation order from the governor. Officials had warned earlier of a
physical blockade, but the governor’s office later backed away from
that, Reuters said.
Protesters
have vowed to stay put. Opponents of the 1,170-mile Dakota Access
Pipeline have gathered for months at the Oceti Sakowin camp, about 40
miles south of Bismarck. The Standing Rock Sioux and other Native
American tribes fear the pipeline could pollute the Missouri River
and harm sacred cultural lands and tribal burial grounds.
