Rosebud Sioux Tribe: House Vote on Keystone Pipeline XL an "Act of War"

"The House has now signed our death warrants and the death warrants of our children and grandchildren. The Rosebud Sioux Tribe will not allow this pipeline through our lands,” President Cyril Scott said in a statement. “We will close our reservation borders to Keystone XL.”

Scott said he and other tribal elders have not been appropriately consulted on the pipeline, which would run through the tribe's land. He also contended the House vote violates the 1851 and 1868 Fort Laramie treaties, which gave the Black Hills to the Sioux Nation, according to the Summit County Citizen's Voice.

www.huffingtonpost.com...

Original source of HuffPo article: summitcountyvoice.com...

Alternate sources:

www.nydailynews.com...

thehill.com...

Did a search and saw nothing on this on ATS and was really surprised. I really don't know what to say about this. I hope it is political posturing but I"m not sure. The Rosebud Sioux are a small tribal nation; however, this has serious issues in terms of what it means to be partially sovereign and it also means that the pipeline could have a sizable impact on the tribe (and in ways they clearly do not want). Additionally, the Great Sioux Nation have already agreed to oppose the Keystone Pipeline. One tribe, however, does not speak for other so what would happen if push came to shove, I really don't know.

a reply to: WhiteAlice

So, USA is going to steamroll a bunch of Natives again?

I doubt it's posturing on their part - at least, I hope it isn't and they stand up for their land rights.

a reply to: Ameilia

I'm really uncertain about whether it's posturing or not to be honest. I really hope that we do not have a repeat of history as doing that would most likely assure the involvement of other nations. I know that the Rosebud Sioux were one of the Sioux tribes that went into an agreement with the Great Sioux Nation in opposition against Keystone XL earlier this year.

So far, what I can glean from a variety of sources, they will be engaging in acts of "civil disobedience" and doing all they can to prevent construction equipment from entering the tribal lands. A spirit camp has been started as well.

nativenewsonline.net...

The Treaty of Fort Laramie of 1868: en.wikipedia.org...

This is the treaty that Pres. Scott of the Rosebud Sioux is referencing. Apparently, the Black Hills and the rights to the land were given to the Lakota tribe with this treaty. Violations of the treaty occurred and when gold was discovered in the Black Hills, white prospectors were coming onto the tribal lands with the US government "pressuring" the Sioux and Cheyenne to remain on their lands.

This erupted into the Great Sioux War of 1876 and the Battle of Little Bighorn. The US government seized the Black Hills and the lands were a subject of a legal battle between the Sioux and the US government in the courts. The US government lost but the Sioux demanded the Black Hills to be returned to them. The wiki on the case is pretty interesting. United States v. Sioux Nation of Indians

I can see why Pres. Scott is referencing this particular treaty. It is a reminder of what has been done previously when an outsiders' interest broke a treaty.

So much forethought from our elected leaders.

Interesting development (pun not intended but still there). If the tribes involved in opposing the pipeline stick to their guns (icky pun not intended, but, yeah) this could be a major step in the inevitable American Indian Rights movement, as those broken treaties stick out like a sore thumb in history now. Wouldn't be surprised (yes, I would) if New York was forced to sell back Manhattan to the Indians for 24 dollars.

Tribal land is Sovereign, meaning it is a separate country, and the Federal Government should not underestimate the lawyers for the Bureau of Indian Affairs.

I met a full blood Mohawk years back who was a steelworker. He actually carried a red card (hat tip to the sense of humor of the U.S. government) and he told me that it made his car a sovereign nation, too. It was common for drugs, guns, liquor and cigarettes to be driven over the border between NY and Canada by simply flashing the card. The border Patrol was not allowed to search their cars.

If one of the tribe got into trouble, a call to NYC to the Bureau of Indian Affairs meant an instantaneous response from a very high powered lawyer who arrived on a private helicopter, and that was the end of it.., at least according to his stories.

It's been a long time since the Battle of Little Bighorn, and these are a noble people, they are warriors AND have lawyers, as well as being in the right.

Some days I can't tell which makes me more ashamed. Being white, or being American.

Rosebud Sioux Tribe

It's a somewhat random thought, but wouldn't it be great if the people that finally got us started on the long road to 'preserving and protecting the Constitution against ALL ENEMIES, FOREIGN AND DOMESTIC (but especially domestic) was a revolt of the tribes against Washington?

We are so close to a Last Straw, I can hear it coming down the road.

We await the" burning man" the spark that moves the people.............

It is a mistake to underestimate the warrior spirit of the Red Man.
Just because they have refrained from battle for some time, and wisely so, does not mean they are a bunch of push overs.

originally posted by: skunkape23
It is a mistake to underestimate the warrior spirit of the Red Man.
Just because they have refrained from battle for some time, and wisely so, does not mean they are a bunch of push overs.

Ya watch...money talks and the Red Man will walk...count on it!

originally posted by: solarstorm

originally posted by: skunkape23
It is a mistake to underestimate the warrior spirit of the Red Man.
Just because they have refrained from battle for some time, and wisely so, does not mean they are a bunch of push overs.

Ya watch...money talks and the Red Man will walk...count on it!

You may be right. I'll put 20 to 1 and a bottle of whiskey on it. Want to bet?

originally posted by: skunkape23

originally posted by: solarstorm

originally posted by: skunkape23
It is a mistake to underestimate the warrior spirit of the Red Man.
Just because they have refrained from battle for some time, and wisely so, does not mean they are a bunch of push overs.

Ya watch...money talks and the Red Man will walk...count on it!

You may be right. I'll put 20 to 1 and a bottle of whiskey on it. Want to bet?

You didn't just make a "drunk Indian" stereotype remark, did you? Just making sure... the wording was a bit strange.




Want to know an Indian's take on it all (I am one, BTW)?

This is a wonderful way for you guys to be celebrating "Thanksgiving."

Great timing, America.

originally posted by: solarstorm

originally posted by: skunkape23
It is a mistake to underestimate the warrior spirit of the Red Man.
Just because they have refrained from battle for some time, and wisely so, does not mean they are a bunch of push overs.

Ya watch...money talks and the Red Man will walk...count on it!

Actually, I know that several of the tribes are very wary of these kind of agreements because of past issues. The biggest problem that we've had with the tribes in terms of treaties and agreements is a complex mixture of failing to understand their nature (they have a totally different worldview--no joke, lived with a tribe for a long while) and issues with treaties/agreements themselves. I know that there are several tribes that are not too pleased with the outcomes of things that were done and the whole money thing? They tend to be very skeptical on that. See Cobell v. Salazar as an example of that and The Dawes Act.

Btw, just a fyi, "red man" is a slur.

originally posted by: Jomina

originally posted by: skunkape23

originally posted by: solarstorm

originally posted by: skunkape23
It is a mistake to underestimate the warrior spirit of the Red Man.
Just because they have refrained from battle for some time, and wisely so, does not mean they are a bunch of push overs.

Ya watch...money talks and the Red Man will walk...count on it!

You may be right. I'll put 20 to 1 and a bottle of whiskey on it. Want to bet?

You didn't just make a "drunk Indian" stereotype remark, did you? Just making sure... the wording was a bit strange.

Want to know an Indian's take on it all (I am one, BTW)?

This is a wonderful way for you guys to be celebrating "Thanksgiving."

Great timing, America.

I think the bottle of whiskey was for himself. In the post above it, he was giving a nod to the warrior spirit. It's so sad that no matter how much time passes that we still do these things.

My youngest is half Nat Am. I know it doesn't mean much but this bilagaana is sorry. I've seen what we've done to the tribes and it makes me so mad that our government just keeps digging the knife in.

While there's been some big monetary settlements, some things are more important than money. And once you already have money, you have power.

Indian Land Claims Settlements

Utterly off topic, but I once lived in a tepee in upstate NY for almost a year. It was the most intense, elegant, enlivening housing I ever had. I was devastated to move back to what I was then calling 'white man's house.' There's something about the round shape, the poles, the fire, and looking through the smoke hole at the stars, and the sounds all around you that makes being alive an adventure. Square rooms and flat ceilings mimic the white man's lack of imagination somehow...

'Only when the last tree has died
and the last river has been poisoned
and the last fish has been caught
will we realize that we can't eat money'

well this is a good opportunity for all those that oppose the genocide of the natives that didnt happen in their generational period to stand up and say enough is enough and back them up....

American Sioux Indian story

The creator gathered all of creation and said,

"I want to hide something from the humans until they are ready for it. It is the realisation that they create their own reality".

The Eagle said, "Give it to me, i will take it to the moon".

The creator said, "No, one day they will go there and find it".

The salmon said, "I will bury it at the bottom of the ocean".

The creator said, " No they will go there too".

The buffalo said, "I will bury it on the great plains".

The creator said, " No, they will cut the skin of the Earth and find it even there".

Grandmother mole, who lives in the breast of Mother earth, and who has no physical eyes but sees with spiritual eyes said, "Put it inside of them".

And the creator said, "It is done!"

a reply to: signalfire

My best friend's father was part Sioux and every year, he'd bring out an immense teepee. He let us use it a couple times every summer so didn't get to live in it but boy, did I love it. Some of my best memories really.

I know that the Navajo Nation (my youngest's tribe) was awarded a pretty large settlement recently--$554 million--in mismanagement case of tribal resources.

www.latimes.com...

There's been a number of cases over the years like this one and so I really cannot blame the Rosebud Sioux one bit for not being amenable to this at all--even at the promise of big money in exchange. They have a right to be cynical.

You'd think that the gov't would realize just how much the Native American Tribes value certain tracks of land as very sacred and just avoid confrontation by not threatening them. A threat on the Back Hills might bring in more than the Sioux. Even the Iroquois in NY are starting to want their lands back mainly because they don't like how we have abused them! How about the gov't just go around the land of the Sioux and respect their rights for a change?

indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com...

It seems to me that their claim to this land is much more valid than the European jews claim to Isreal! So why do we fight to protect the jews claim while we work so hard to refuse the claim on the Black Hills? Obviously it has nothing to do with what is morally right or wrong..

“Barack Obama is a strong believer in tribal sovereignty. He does not believe courts or the federal government should force Sioux tribes to take settlement money for the Black Hills. He believes the tribes are best suited to decide how to handle the monetary award themselves. Obama would not be opposed to bringing together all the different parties through government-to-government negotiations to explore innovative solutions to this long-standing issue.” Read more at indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com...

Let's see if white man still speaks with forked tongue.