A SOLIDARITY STATEMENT BY SEXTA GRIETAS DEL NORTE
Sexta Grietas del Norte is a network of individuals and organizations that accompanies our indigenous brothers and sisters in their building of autonomy and resistance to the capitalist megaprojects that destroy lands and territories. We stand in solidarity with the indigenous-led Stop Line 3 movement in their ongoing struggle to prevent the expansion of the Line 3 pipeline corridor, which is designed to transport massive quantities of pernicious tar sands oil from Alberta, Canada to Lake Superior, in violation of historic treaty rights of the Anishinaabe (Ojibwe) to hunt, fish and gather from clean waters and land.
This environmentally disastrous megaproject is being constructed by Enbridge Corporation, responsible for the largest inland oil spill in the US.(link to article), as well as many other documented spills and unmitigated destruction of waterways. Enbridge’s top financiers are: Citi Bank, Wells Fargo, Bank of America, J.P Morgan and Trust.
The proposed expansion entails:
-multiple crossings of riverways near the mouth of Mississippi River, threatening the source of water to millions of people downstream.
-the permanent disruption of vulnerable wetlands that have provided sustenance to indigenous peoples for millennia.
– a violation of treaty rights of the Anishinaabe (Ojibwe), including eviction of Red Lake Treaty Camp.
– the diversion of water in a time of serious drought in Minnesota . Enbridge has blocked off 5 billion gallons of water at the Mississippi Headwaters in order to drill the Line 3 tar sands pipeline.
Gov. Time Walz and the Public Utilities Commission are responsible for the 50 million gallons of water being held for Enbridge during a drought. In addition, the PUC is reimbursing the police that are evicting and arresting folks on Anishinaabe territory.
With lies, bribes and offers of employment, Enbridge and their associates have managed to convince some of the local population to support this deathly project. But we have seen, time and time again, how short-lived are the so-called benefits to local communities from such destructive megaprojects. Once the construction is over, the jobs disappear, leaving death and irreparable destruction to land and communities in their wake. We believe the protection of lands and territories from the ravaging of capitalist extractive industries is necessary for the very survival of human communities.
We deplore the use of counterinsurgency tactics by the forces of order to harass protestors and sow fear among them.
We denounce the funding of local law enforcement through a private fund by Enbridge.
We celebrate the courageous activists, led by the Anishinabe people who, despite harassment and arrests, continue to stand up against the invasion of this invaluable land.
We call for an immediate halt to all operations on Line 3, and worldwide support of the water protectors!
HOW YOU CAN HELP:
The water protectors are inviting people to come to their resistance camp and assist the direct action protests against this megaproject of death. For more information, email: giniw@protonmail.com. Or go to Stop Line 3.
To donate to the movement , go to this link.
To donate directly to the frontlines click here.
For more information and for other ways to support the STOPLINE3 movement in your own geographies, check out Stop Line 3.
