Stand with First Nations – Oppose Tar Sands Mining and KXL

There are a few resonating news items regarding tar sands extraction, the Keystone XL Pipeline, and their impact on the indigenous people of this continent:

1. Alberta toxic waste spill could be biggest North American environmental disaster in recent history

The spill was first discovered on June 1st, about 100 kms south of the border with the Northwest Territories, near the small town of Zama City. Texas-based Apache Corporation, the oil company responsible for the spill, just released their estimate of its size on Wednesday [June 12th]…

“Every plant and tree died,” said James Ahnassay, chief of the Dene Tha First Nation, according toThe Globe and Mail, as he spoke of the effect the spill has had on the land. The Dene Tha apparently also believe that waterfowl may have been killed in the spill, which took place in a wetlands area, but according to The Globe and Mail, Apache representatives said they saw no impacts on wildlife.

2.  The Beaver Lake Cree Judgment: The Most Important Tar Sands Case You’ve Never Heard Of

“…the constitutional standing of the tar sands – one of the world’s largest and most carbon-intensive energy projects – is just what’s at stake in a treaty rights claim the Beaver Lake Cree Nation (BLCN) is bringing against the Governments of Alberta and Canada in a case that promises to be one of the most significant legal and constitutional challenges to the megaproject seen in Canada to date…

The Alberta Court of Appeal’s decision to uphold the claim against the crown, grants the BLCN the opportunity to argue the cumulative negative impacts of tar sands expansion may constitute a legal breach of the band’s historic Treaty 6 with the Canadian government, signed back in 1876.

And the significance of this judgment cannot be overstated. The BLCN’s claim now stands as the first opportunity for legal consideration of the cumulative impacts of the tar sands on First Nation’s traditional territory and the implications of those impacts on the ability to uphold Treaty Rights.”

3. Keystone XL Pipeline Follows in Tracks of Conquest, Sexual Violence and Colonization

Faith Spotted Eagle wrote an important piece on the consequences of the pipeline going through South Dakota reservations.

“Native communities are viewed by the colonizers as inherently “dirty, dispensable” communities where waste and toxins can be deposited. These reservations communities are located on or near the fifty six waterways identified as being affected by the pipeline…

We climbed into a van that had the pictures on it of missing and murdered Native women. The two grandmothers driving the van explained that they were on a walk across Canada to bring attention to this outrage, which they urgently believe is related to industrial and mining development on or adjacent to Native lands. They were adamant about telling us to keep this in mind when stopping the KXL Pipeline, because it would protect the women, children and families of our nations. As we traveled to the hotel, I could feel the spirits of the murdered and missing women traveling with us in the van.”

She also talked with Caroline Casey on the Visionary Activist Show yesterday, and there’s video of her testifying to the US State Department in April.

Outraged yet?

 “Our Native prophecies state that there will be a time to stand up for what is important, and that time is now!!” ~ Faith Spotted Eagle

Ready to stand up and be Idle No More?