by Lauren Heaton
There has been a lot of buzz surrounding actress Shailene Woodley’s recent arrest in North Dakota at a peaceful demonstration blockading the construction site for the Dakota Access Pipeline.
However, before we dive into the star’s arrest, there are a few other elements involved in this story to consider:
1) According to daplpipelinefacts.com, the Dakota Access Pipeline is a project intended to connect the recently booming oil fields of North Dakota to Patoka, Ill. for refining. Transporting the domestically produced crude oil via the pipeline is argued to be safer, cost-effective and more environmentally responsible than transporting via railways or trucking. Other benefits of the pipeline include job creation for about 8,000-12,000 local jobs during construction, as well as, the economic benefits the surrounding towns will see with the spending money of the workers. Additionally, the pipeline will increase the United States’s energy independence, which is increasingly important as we are the number one consumer of crude oil in the world (third largest producer).
2) The Standing Rock Sioux Tribe sued the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers who approved the building of the pipeline because they believe the pipeline will harm the Tribe’s water sources,
ancient burial grounds and cultural well-being.
3) According to thinkprogress.org, the protest occurred on Oct. 10, which many Americans know to be Columbus Day. However, there is a movement on the rise to rename and repurpose the holiday as Indigenous Peoples’ Day to celebrate Native American Heritage. As of this year, 17 jurisdictions celebrate Indigenous Peoples’ day instead of Columbus Day. Berkeley, Calif. was the first to make the switch in 1992, Denver and the entire state of Vermont are also among those who replaced Columbus Day with Indigenous Peoples’ Day this year.
As far as Woodley’s role in the matter goes, she was one of about 27 protesters arrested and was the first released on bail. After the events, Woodley interviewed with various news organizations and released her own statement published on Time Magazine’s website. The actress wants to call attention to Native American culture threatened by this pipeline. Woodley made statements like:
“We buy plastic teepees from Toys-R-Us and set them up in our living rooms for children to play in. We grow up romanticizing native culture, native art, native history […] without knowing native reality. Somehow, we’ve allowed 200- plus years to go by without questioning the western truth we have been told to believe about Native Americans.”
I agree western culture mistreatment of Native American culture needs to end. The fact the United States still has not learned to respect and better protect Native American culture is disheartening.
“We fail to notice. We fail to acknowledge. We fail to act,” Woodley said. “We are allowing Native American voices to be swallowed by the white noise
of distraction.”
I am impressed she is taking the time to be a spokesperson for an important issue and I agree with her honorable motives.
However, in the end, I think the Dakota Access Pipeline is a good idea. I believe it to be a safe alternative to rail or truck transportation of the crude oil. I would rather the U.S. become independent for more of its energy needs than continue to import resources we have on our own soil. The economic benefits from the pipeline construction and subsequent oil field and refining jobs that would be on U.S. soil are benefits I want to see in our country.
With that in mind, I think big oil companies can do the right thing and ensure the pipeline construction stays off the Standing Rock Sioux’s land and far enough away that it will not cause them harm.
Protect the people, protect the land, make America that much more energy independent. Is that too much to ask?
