Activists, opposing the construction of a crude oil pipeline through Native American lands, have built a makeshift bridge in order to get access to Turtle Island.
Photo: Instagram / annestoltebailey
A makeshift bridge has been built by activists, opposing the construction of a crude oil pipeline through Native American lands, in order to protect a sacred hill in North Dakota, which is occupied by security and law enforcement.
A number of flashpoints, involving protesters arguing against a 1,172 mile pipeline, which is going to be built according to Energy Transfer LLC’s project, have taken place on Turtle Island hill. According to tribe leaders, the pipeline could threaten local drinking water.
The US Army Corps of Engineers is a current owner of the land, where the hill lies. However, the local Bismarck Tribune claims that the mound was once a place for a Native American burial ground and still remains a spiritual location.
Footage, taken by a drone and published on Facebook by Indigenous Rising Media, which supports protests against the construction of the oil pipeline, shows tens of activists, attempting to get access to Turtle Island on Thanksgiving Day.
The video allows to see a small wooden bridge, which has been erected by protesters in order to let them to cross a small offshoot of the nearby Missouri River, while private security officers and members of the Morton County Sheriff’s Department stand on top of the hill.
Most #NoDAPL water protectors crossed to Turtle Island using a makeshift floating bridge and canoes @APTNNews pic.twitter.com/RWrqWt38RG
— Tom Fennario (@tfennario) 24 ноября 2016 г.
#NoDAPL water protectors are back on Turtle Island, but Police have the higher ground @APTNNews pic.twitter.com/q1KlMI2c6e — Tom Fennario (@tfennario) 24 ноября 2016 г.
At the same time, some protesters have been accused by the Morton County Sheriff’s Department of rigging propane canisters to explode on Backwater Bridge.