All language subtitles for Oyate.2022.1080p.AMZN.WEB-DL.DDP2.0.H.264-PTerWEB

Water is life! Water is life!

Water is life!
Water is life! Water is life!

I think that we're the most

optimistic people
in the world.

As hard as it may be
at times,

the natural order
of life itself

can be devastating.

But that is our law,

natural law
and ancestral law.

Our sacred sites,
our language,

all of our existence,

inextricably connected

to the land
and the universe.

We have a circle
that goes and goes and goes.

The Hochoka
where we dance is a circle.

There is no end.

Even when this pipeline
goes through.

Look at my face!
Remember me!

In these
United States of America,

this great country
of ours,

we American Indians, we can be
anything we want to be

except American Indians.

And that is created
by the laws of this nation

and designed
for the Indian to fail,

to be expendable,

to be eliminated.

Early in the occupation,

you're quoted
as saying that

you're willing to die
here at Wounded Knee.

Is it still the case?

Definitely. As I stated,

they either massacre us
or recognize our treaty.

You know,
we're not afraid of death,

but we don't want to be killed.

Here we go.
Here we go. Here we go.

*

It's a new time
for our people

since Standing Rock.

It validated our struggle.

We're at a time
when we can acknowledge

the rights
of indigenous peoples.

When we gather,

I regain my strength
across the board.

We are pushed to the edge.

That's what
Ihanktonwan means,

the people on the edge.

So, as the people
on the edge,

we are the ambassadors
to the outside world.

*

We don't know
how much time we have.

So, if it's the last hurrah,

we have an obligation
to protect our people.

You know,
the hand that feeds you

is the hand
that you don't wanna bite.

The hand that feeds you is also
the hand that can starve you.

For the longest time,
this has been the United States.

That is the hand
that can starve us.

That is the hand that feeds us.

We deserve the right
to stand on our own two feet.

So, today
we're in the process

of reclaiming our abilities

just to simply
provide for ourselves.

We're-- we're talking
about the-- the ability

to just feed ourselves.

If we wanted to process
our own buffalo,

sell it to our own schools,
our own jails,

our own grocery stores,

the United States
would be there immediately

with their, you know,

United States Department
of Agriculture.

Or there-- there would be
some inspector here

or a surgeon general
to tell us,

"You, Indian,
are not in compliance

with this colonial rule
that we have for you."

Yes.

These-- these guys

are some of the last
true sovereigns.

They don't have owners.

They don't answer
to anybody.

You know what I mean?
These are rez dogs.

These are some
of the last true survivors.

And on any-- any rez,
you're gonna find them.

And I don't know,
they're-- they're amazing.

They're a source of inspiration
'cause nobody owns them.

*

My name is Chase Iron Eyes.

I greet everyone as a friend.

I'm currently
a presidential aide

to Julian Bear Runner,

the newly elected president
of the Oglala Lakota Nation.

I'm an attorney,
I'm a husband,

I'm a father
and just a family man

who has to do some things

to alleviate
some of these symptoms

that I've never come
to see them

or to live with them

like I have now that I live
on the Pine Ridge Reservation.

Hey. I'm good.

Come here. How's it going?

-Good. How are you?
-Hey.

Remember
I told you I'll be back?

-Yeah.
-Yeah.

I was growing up

in a young society,

But my ancestors,

they come from
the

Ah.

"You guys hurt my people,
we'll hurt you back," okay?

Right.

Yes.

Why are there
no Lakota-speaking millionaires?

Why? Because if we had
all the wealth

that was looted from us

and continues to be
to this day,

we could liberate
this entire country.

We would share all of it.

We would already have
universal health care.

We would have
affordable housing.

Everything that
The New Green Deal

and the progressives,
they're speaking our language.

We've been speaking
that language

for a very long time.

Can you give me
something to eat?

Yeah, I'll get you
something to eat, my man.

Okay. I ordered--

We just opened up today.

-Yeah?
-Yeah.

-I'm Joanie's sister.
-Oh, what?

-Yeah.
-Oh, yeah, yeah.

Is this the-- is this
the straight-up trailer

that you guys
remade into a-- a--

Yeah. My brother is,
uh, one of Joanie--

Joanie's brother too.

-Yeah, man.
-So it's our--

-it's our first day out.
-That's legit.

You could probably go--
I mean, I don't know how much

it costs to get gas
to other communities,

but if you just show up
in any community,

you know, what I mean?

Well, it's called

Ah. Yes, yes. I like that.

Instead of walking--
that's better than walking taco.

Hey, how are you doing?

-Not good.
-Why? What up?

Trying to get up to Rapid

'cause my grandfather
got flown up this morning.

Oh, damn.

Like I said, if you can
help me out with some gas.

I've been out with these
all morning.

And this
I just got done with.

this and then
I have these three.

I gotta go pay for
this dude's food right now.

Where you gonna, uh...

I'll be right here.
I'm in that van.

Okay, well, just hang out--
hang out in there

for right now,
and then I'll bri--

bring you some

The homeless
brothers and sisters

who have to hustle like that
every single day,

they speak Lakota.

Most of them speak Lakota

at a time when
our languages are endangered.

So those same
policies that incentivized,

you know,
killing the Indian

and saving the man,

they're still at work today.

*

Sometimes facts are dull.

Popular interest is most
easily stirred by the unusual.

This perhaps is the reason

scarcely one in 1,000
knows the true story

of the American Indian
in relation to his government.

*

The nation's
current Indian policy

has three chief objectives:

economic rehabilitation
of the Indians,

principally on land,

organization
of Indian tribes

for managing
their own affairs,

civic and cultural freedom

and opportunity
for the Indians.

*

Everybody's feet
need to be held to the fire.

Even mine,
because right now

I'm running
for United States Congress

in North Dakota.

And my political advisors

advised me
not to get involved

with what's going on

right now with
the Dakota Access Pipeline.

But real leadership

does not back down
from any controversy,

any real issue.

You face the storm head-on.

We have an ancient prophecy

that one day
a black snake would come

bringing sickness,
destruction, and death

to the people and lands
of our nations.

In 2014, Energy Transfer
Partners announced

the Dakota Access Pipeline,

which, when completed,
would carry

40% of all oil produced
in North Dakota's Bakken

down to the Gulf Coast.

The pipeline was set
to cross a narrow section

of the Missouri River,
ten miles north of Bismarck.

But after
residents complained,

it was abruptly rerouted
to just 1,000 ft

outside of
the Standing Rock Reservation,

putting it directly across
our only water source.

If the pipeline were to leak,
as all pipelines do,

it would endanger
the drinking water

of the entire community.

So, just as they did
in Bismarck,

we demanded they relocate it.

But in early 2016,

North Dakota
approved the route

even though the company
had been accused of extortion,

bribery, and bypassing
government regulations.

They began construction
on the pipeline,

and we immediately
built a prayer camp

along the river to protest.

By August, word spread
across the country.

We have an ambitious,
a very ambitious agenda.

There are people
who are willing to come here

in masses.

I tell you. I know.

* I keep the power
in my necklace *

* For these haters
in vicinity *

* Been a remedy
for centuries *

* Not to give a word
about my enemy *

* Still dreams
of living free *

* Ridin' with my chief
goes back to creation *

* To creation, to creation

* Native like my blood
goes back to creation *

* To creation, hey

* Native before America
was a nation *

Incredible gathering.

Thirty countries,

416 tribal nations.

They have
their own struggles.

They came
for their own beliefs,

but believing in us,

and we lit the fire

that has not been lit
in 150 years.

Was a beautiful,
beautiful time.

*

Now, after Standing Rock,

the eyes of the world
are on us.

The eyes of the world
are on indigenous nations.

The original civilizers,

they don't teach you about,
you know,

your people are the original
civilizers of this--

this entire hemisphere.

Sovereignty

is our right.

It's our natural state.

Poverty is not
a natural state for us.

When we signed the treaties

with the United States,

we were referred to
as the Sioux Nation,

but we call ourselves

Oceti Sakowin,

the Seven Council Fires,
the Seven Bands.

The Lakota people,
the Oceti Sakowin are here.

We stand together.

We stand tall to protect
the sacred river.

If you truly
want to understand projects

like the Dakota
Access Pipeline,

you need to understand
their history

and where
they come from.

Our narrative
is very different

than what you would
find in a book.

American history began
when Columbus arrived,

and for us, that-- that's
not our narrative at all.

So, when Columbus
came to America,

he came on three
cute little ships,

as we learned in history.

We now know
that he came with

what is referred to as
the Doctrine of Discovery.

That says
we are not Christian,

and as non-Christians,

we have no right
to the land.

Our nations
were existing here,

free and independent.

And when the colonizers
came on their ships,

what they encountered here
were entire peoples,

entire nations
with language, culture,

spiritual traditions,

entire ways of life.

To be a colonizer

means that you cannot
recognize the rights

or the basic humanity

of those that you are
colonizing.

They were Saracens,
they were barbarians,

they were primitive,

patently unable

to have the same rights

that the "civilized world" had.

We were two thirds
human being

and the rest animal.

man
asked me, "What do you have

that I don't have?"

"Well, I'm part savage
according to the records,

so don't raise my ire."

Um, having fun with it.

But, um...

But look at me.

I think
I'm a beautiful human being.

I'm the evidence
of the Western hemisphere

as a former

It's time for action.

I said it to America,

I said it to the veterans,

and now I have to say it
to my own people

that we have to do
things today

not tomorrow.

Oh, that's a

There's two white ones
and two brown ones

like-- like him.

We believe that they--

they assume the spirit
of the human

so they are here
for a purpose.

Um, but they're odd characters.

We were blessed today

with, uh, this heavy,
heavy rain.

Magázu is rain.

We have names.

You don't play with them.

My grandmother was

which means
"hails all over."

So she came today.

She blessed me today,

and so I feel--
I can feel it.

I'm woman
who stands by the water

and woman
who loves the water.

Those are my given names

by my family
and my people.

I was part of
the American Indian movement.

*

I was associated
with Russell Means.

In these
United States of America,

this great country
of ours,

we American Indians,

we can be anything
we want to be

except American Indians.

We're part of
the Trail of Broken Treaties

in 1972
where people mobilized.

Overwhelmed by the murders

and the rapes
and the criminal activity

against the Oglala nation,

the American Indian Movement

occupied the village
of Wounded Knee in 1973.

What the American
Indian Movement most wanted

was a full-scale Senate inquiry
led by Senator Edward Kennedy

into government treatment
of Indians in general

and the South Dakota Sioux
in particular.

The movement's leader
at Wounded Knee, Russell Means,

also called
for another investigation

by Senator William Fulbright

into nearly 400 treaties

allegedly signed
by the Indians

and broken
by the U.S. government.

What do you think
is going to be necessary to do

to get from
the Department of the Interior

and the Bureau to recognize

your aims and-- and your goals?

We're no longer dealing
with the Department of Interior.

We're no longer dealing
with any of the subordinate

departments
of the federal government.

According
to our treaty rights,

we are to deal

with the President
of the United States

and/or his designated
representative...

The federal government

through its treaty
and trust obligations

must consult on
a government-to-government basis

with tribes.

*

The situation with
the Dakota Access Pipeline

was one of

inauthentic consultation
in my view.

There was tremendous resistance
on the part of the company

and a lot of pressure
on the ground

in the state
of North Dakota in particular

for that pipeline project
to go forward.

I think
one of the questions is,

why did they have to go
so far south

so that they impacted
a large body of water

as opposed to a much smaller
body of water upstream?

And I-- I think that

those motivations
are suspicious,

because if the shortest
distance between two points

is a straight line,
that straight line

would have run north of Bismarck
and under the Missouri River.

For me,
it's survival because

their response plan for,

uh, a spill

is backed up
into this waterway right here,

the Porcupine Creek,

which connects with the mouth
of the Missouri River.

That's my home,

and my water will be
totally contaminated.

The clouds, the rain,

it's not, "Oh, it's terrible
weather out there."

That's the American way
of describing it.

But those are
our Wakiya Oyate,

our thunder beings people,

and they bring blessings
and purification,

so when there's snow
and rain and clouds,

the Wakiya,
that's my brother up there.

I know he's there.

Russell Means,
I know he's there helping us.

Like the other Wounded Knee,

it's going to continue
until the United States

addresses itself
to the treaty rights

of Indian people
all over the United States.

This is one
of 371 treaties

ratified by the Congress
of the United States,

which make them-- make them
the law of the land,

equal to and on par
with the Constitution.

*

This is our territory.

God gave us this country.

We signed treaties
with the Americans

thinking that
they would take them

as seriously as we take them
as sacred covenants.

I feel like, you know,
every time a treaty was signed,

once the United States realized

that they wanted more,

those violations
were almost instantaneous.

The 1868
Treaty of Fort Laramie

was a treaty of peace.

In it, it effectively
gave the Lakotas

all of what's
now South Dakota

west of the Missouri River

and acknowledged
their right to hunt

north of
the North Platte River,

so effectively
giving them the full range

of the northern plains.

As soon as the ink
seemed to have dried,

they continued
their genocidal onslaught,

not only against us,

but against
our older brothers and sisters,

the-- the natural civilizers,
the buffalo.

For them to just
annihilate the buffalo

the way that they did

and be proud of it
and leave a waste for us

left our people
with starvation and hunger.

And so
the United States said,

"Well, if you move on to
the reservation and stay there,

we'll-- we'll feed you."

The rations
of the United States government

represent an ongoing arm

of the colonial experience.

There's nothing there
that's good for us.

We're talking
about low-grade flour,

fatty or dried meat
of very low quality.

Under those circumstances,

malnutrition,
diabetes skyrocketed.

In fact, the Indian agent

in '64 writes,

"As to the Sioux,
what are we trying to do?

Are we trying to kill them?

Because if we are,

then what we are doing
is correct."

So very quickly,
the United States

declared that the Lakotas
would not have the range

of their hunting grounds,

that they would have
to live only within

the boundaries of the--
of the Great Sioux Reservation.

That didn't last
very long either.

Custer,

Lieutenant Colonel
George Armstrong Custer,

trespasses
in the Black Hills in 1874,

discovers gold,

and gold and greed

are the fuel
for a prospecting nation.

Almost immediately,

that forced a violation

big time
of the 1868 treaty,

stripping us
of our resources

under the guise
of statutory law.

The Black Hills contained

our holy places of origin.

The Black Hills are tied

directly to our cosmology.

Our Wak'iyapi,
our Ohunkake,

will always be descended
from the Black Hills.

Since the Dawes
Allotment Act in 1884,

there was
a great land theft

in which we lost hundreds
of millions of acres of land.

The state of South Dakota

was granted
statehood in 1889.

So was North Dakota,

and they are
holding their lands

in a state
of illegal annexation.

It's all too familiar

that our ancestors
had to de-- deal

with some of those
same issues, right,

in a different way.

"We want
something you have,

and we're gonna use force
to get it."

*

This is
the audiovisual deposition

of Sheriff Kyle Kirchmeier
in the matter

of State of North Dakota,
plaintiff,

versus Chase Alone
Iron Eyes, defendant.

Criminal action
number 30212017...

We had had
a reasonable relationship

with the police for about
the first month or so.

And that's
what it was all about

is, uh, the-- the safety part
so that the contractors

could do their work
that they could legally do

and the protesters
could protest,

and we in law enforcement
are in the middle

to make sure
that public safety

-remains number one.
-Okay.

But tensions grew
after September 3, 2016.

ETP came in and bulldozed

a sacred site
right near the river.

Stop!

When people
went out to see the damage,

a deadly security force
with attack dogs

was waiting for them.

We ain't scared of you.

The dog has blood
in its nose and its mouth.

Let me see. Let me see.

-Over there.
-That dog.

I think it was an overt action

by the protest element
to try to paint us

as these abusive
law enforcement officers

when just the opposite
was true.

We were very restrained
and very professional.

Arrested water protectors

were put in dog kennels,
denied medical care,

not offered water
for hours at a time.

Put your gun down.

Those are live rounds. That is
not less-than-lethal ammunition.

Why is your finger
so close to that trigger?

We are unarmed.

At the end of September,
our chairman,

Dave Archambault,
went to the United Nations

and pleaded with them
to acknowledge the situation.

Well, we have gone to the court
in the United States.

Our courts have failed
to protect our sovereign rights,

our sacred places,
and our water.

We call upon
the Human Rights Council

and all members

to condemn the destruction
of our sacred places

and to support
our nation's efforts

to ensure that our
sovereign rights are respected.

*

Uh, there wasn't
any clear and present danger

being posed to people

or any structures of any kind
at that point,

was there?

Other than it's illegal,
that's correct.

Basically, we were told

to remove the camp,

clear the camp.

For the people!

So, they were
gonna be removed and they--

and they basically said,
"No, this is our line

in the sand
and we're not moving,"

and it was--
it was dealt with.

It got, uh...

um...

it got out of control
if we can say that.

So, who told you

to arrest them
for trespassing?

I can't say
that anybody specifically said

"Arrest them for trespassing."

Back up. Back up.

-Get off of me!
-Taser. Taser.

We're not gonna win
against the-- the government.

We're not gonna win
against their military.

So the one thing I look at
is if they're gonna take away

our-- our rights
such as, you know,

building a pipeline under,
you know, the water source,

and they wanna do
all these things

to slowly try to kill us off,

then we're gonna beat them
at their own game

because that's the ultimate form
of revenge on them.

Through my music, if I can
make it to a high level,

of like J. Cole or Kendrick

and be recognized
as a great artist,

but also being
Native American,

you know,
that's gonna be, um,

one of those things, like,
you can't hold us down.

You know,
if there's no path

or no direct route
to what you want,

you're gonna
have to make your own.

* Lately I've be learning that
blood is thicker than water *

* But it be your own blood
that would hold you underwater *

* I was taught
your word is all you have *

* Some of y'all
would sell your soul *

* Just to say you got the bag

* And just to feel acceptance
people choose to live illegal *

* They say money is the root
of everything that is evil *

* So why we praise the dollar
actin' like it is the answer *

* Money never saved my people
from dying and getting cancer *

Great, get your hips up
and then get that one home.

Then sweep him.

There you go.
There you go. There you go.

Oh, there you go.

Hey!

So, this is the boxing gym,

but our friend in here,

he trained
to get to Muay Thai

for like six, seven years.

He's still training,
but he's kind of teaching

all of us
a little bit of something.

Lived in a lot of places,
like in North Dakota,

Bismarck especially, but...

just, like, a lot of things
happened to the point

where I had to come--
come home basically.

So, things just
didn't work out.

So, I kind of believe
that all those things

that didn't work out
meant for me to be here

to help the community, so...

This is not dead wood.

Every way
of learning is different.

You go to different tribes,

everybody has a different way
of setting up the fire.

This is just how we learned.

They say
that the belief is that

the sweat lodge
is Mother Earth's womb...

and they say
that when you go in there

and you come out
it's almost like you're reborn.

* Yes, yes, yes, yes

*

They're asking us
to look our children in the eye

and say, "You, my child,
are now in the sacrifice zone.

You are now expected

to give up your right
to clean water

for the benefit
of private corporations."

That's what this is.
This is a fight

for the soul
of our democracy.

*

This is a turning point.

This is when we're pushing back
fossil fuels

and moving into the new era,

and the people
who are gonna lead us

are the native people who have
known this all the time.

* Respected by my elders
I've be following tradition *

* When you talk about a warrior
what's the definition *

We are the greatest people
in the world.

We have endured
and we have survived.

And we are here
for a purpose.

Let's turn the table.
Let's balance our world.

* Quit fighting
with your brothers *

* We should learn
to stay together *

* Legendary status
they'll remember us forever *

* We need to pave the way
for the future generation *

* Show them there's more than
parties on the reservation *

* Show them the importance
of a proper education *

* Lead by example
people be the demonstration *

* You're the only person
that can change the situation *

* I look at where I'm from

* That's all I need for
motivation *

We will put
our best warriors in the front.

We are the vanguard.

We are Hunkpapa Lakota.

This is where you agreed
not to come into my territory.

And I will never submit
to any pipeline

going through my homeland.

* When you talk about a warrior
what's the definition *

* We need to pave the way
for the future generation *

While
the federal government's policy

as worked out through contact
with the Indians

for more than 200 years

is stated
as helping the red man

to live his own life
and manage his own affairs,

it is obvious
there always must be influence

by the majority of inhabitants
in the United States

to change the habits and customs
of the minority.

With the aid
of the white man,

Indians in the United States
now have fine schools

in which there is available
to the youth of the race

education comparable to those
attended by white children.

Where the concentration
of population warrants...

*

There was a partnership

between the United States
government and the churches

to create boarding schools

to take the children

and make them change
into something else

that was not Indian,

to dominate our culture,

and to do away
with our way of life.

The boarding schools are--
are unconscionable

episodes of horror

for my grandmother,
my mother,

our mothers, our aunties,
all of our grandmothers

who suffered things

that almost
can't even be spoken about.

Sexual depredations

and forced instances

of assaults on children.

My grandmother
was also a student at, uh,

a catholic boarding school,

and she was separated
from her family for five years.

When she came back home,

uh, she resumed her life
as a pueblo girl,

although
she did say the rosary

every night
before she went to bed.

We had children that came home
from those boarding schools

where they suffered
great depression.

Many died there,
like at Carlisle.

There were also those
that come home

and they find
they have no place at home,

or they feel that they don't.

That's where the term
"lost bird" comes from.

Um, boarding school.

I, um,
spent a lot of time

with my nose
up against the wall

because
I couldn't speak English.

I only spoke Lakota.

Not too long ago I mentioned,
"Where is that playroom?"

That playroom
was still here.

You probably see
my greasy nose mark

all the way around the...

Yeah.

And then almost every day.

And it got so bad that

they used to hang me up
on clo-- clothes hangers.

On the side of the wall,
they had these coat hangers.

They hanged me there
during recess.

So, I hang there.

And these things--

They say I was uncivilized.

But I don't know.

I thought
I was civilized because

because I had a heart,

I had a way of life,

I had respect,

I had generosity.

And they beat me
and they called that

civilization.

*

They're spraying
water protestors

with a water cannon,

and it is freezing cold
out here.

We don't have water cannons.

Well, what was that

that was causing
all the water

to be poured over
onto the people?

A fire truck.

Morton County
sheriff's department.

I need
to report, um, an assault.

There are innocent
unarmed people

being attacked with water

in freezing-cold temperatures.

Militia-style police
firing at point-blank range

with high-powered mace.

Ma'am,
if there's police there,

then it has--

The police
are the ones attacking

innocent unarmed people.

Okay, ma'am, I-- if--

if you're talking
to our department,

the people who are in charge
know about it.

I-- I--
I do have to go, okay?

*

*

I used to work
at these places, right?

Four summers in a row,
or two summers in a row

I was in customer service.

Once at Legion Lake,

which is another
sister campground

with Sylvan Lake,

and Blue Bell Lodge,

and then there's
State Game Lodge.

But this is all
Custer State Park, right?

The point is, like,
when I was working for him,

he had me and my brothers
do manual labor for him,

like stacking his bales.

Right, but that's
also ironic as hell

considering the national
park system is a joke.

Well, it's--
it's just for people--

Any you as a native person

were working in that system

doing manual labor
for a white guy.

-Yes, but--
-Right?

But this guy was--
had a grill.

He had burgers. He had brats.

How much
were you getting paid?

$4.15 an hour.

-I mean that--
-And that's the tea.

That's what
minimum wage was then.

And even though I thought

I would attain
full white privilege

upon the completion
of law school,

I noticed that people
look at me or us

a-- just because
we're exercising

our Constitutional rights
and our treaty rights--

Let me finish.

If I know more words
than the white man,

-I got white privilege.
-No.

The basis
of white privilege

is that you have to be white
to have it.

My-- my-- when I speak
in the English thinking,

archetypal,
metaphysical, existential way...

No.

...I am exercising
my white privilege

that I earned--

You don't have
white privilege,

and you can't earn
white privilege.

...after $140,000 of schooling,

I might add,
that I still owe for.

So when I confront people
that think they're white,

they don't know they're lost
European indigenous,

and I-- I have
to interact with them

and share discourse with them,

I want them at least
to respect my white privilege.

You don't have it.

-Again--
-No.

-...the United States Constit--
-You don't get it.

You do not get white privilege.
You don't get it.

It's not happening.
You can't have it.

-It's not for you.
-Do you see this mustache

-and beard?
-Yeah.

Do you know
any full bloods

that have a mustache
and beard like this?

Dad, if that
is your standard

of what a beard looks like,

you haven't seen
a white beard.

I've been thinking
very deeply lately...

-since I've had--
-There's no hair there.

What are you rubbing?

I was like, "This thinking man,"
you know what I'm saying?

When Tokata was born,
I had short hair,

I was just
fresh out of prison.

And, you know, in a lot of ways
I've never left that prison.

Because I was able to see

the levels
of institutionalization,

whether that's racial,
economic, or political,

the levels
that we're institutionalized.

I finally,
by the grace of God,

got a second chance,
got into law school

and have been trying
ever since

to walk by my wife's side
in a proper way,

in a way that she deserves
because she saved me there.

While also raising
your children.

-Mm-hmm.
-You had more kids.

-That's right.
-Along the way.

*

Dad.

-What, what, what, what, what?
-Dad.

Hey, you guys should move
those mattresses out, huh?

What mattresses go?

In Wakiya and Danea's room,
yeah.

I was like,
"We have ours."

But-- but go help them though

'cause remember
there's two mattresses.

There's a top
and a bottom, yeah.

We're-- we're just now
completing our move.

It's seven months after
we came to Pine Ridge,

and-- and finally the rest
of our junk is here now,

you know what I mean?

Um, but we need
to sort through it,

see what we can keep and--

and the rest we'll probably
give to, uh, Mama Jewels

or somebody around here,
you know what I mean,

who's on the front line
of the crisis that is every day.

They just do the work
all the time,

so they always
need resources.

Oh, sweet, man. Uh,

yeah, just show up
back here and, um--

Or can you come right over?

All right.
Well, see you soon.

President Bear Runner
needs that trailer today

'cause he's gonna
pick up, uh...

a bunch of--
a bunch of donations

that people are sending
to the Pine Ridge Reservation.

Um, and those are things
that we'll, you know,

we'll get out to the people

from the President's Office
to the Emergency Management,

uh, Department,
all-- you know.

And then
the districts come in,

get 'em and take 'em out

and make sure they get
to where they're needed.

So, I didn't--
oh, yeah, it works.

Yeah, you're--
you're legit, bro. Right on.

Bro, I took this on many trips,

and I didn't get
pulled over once.

So...

-Article VI.
-Yeah. Article VI for real.

My attorney's right over there.

All right,
you're gonna be, uh,

are you leaving
right now then?

Yeah,
whenever you guys are ready.

All right, we're ready.

People will just come
and they sign up and they take,

you know,
whatever they need.

You good?

Yeah, I'm going

You want me
to take you somewhere?

I'm going
to the mobile bank.

Oh, okay.

Hey, we need food at the house.

We didn't even eat supper
last night.

Wow.

I was always
looking for you

'cause you were always
good help.

Yeah, yeah.

We've been starving,
and Esther's elderly,

so I told her I'll come down
and try to see you guys.

Okay.

*

We're talking about a population
of about 30,000 people,

Oglala people, our people,

75% of whom...

are unemployed.

And we're talking
about poverty levels

where people subsist

on annual incomes of...

less than $3,000
for the whole year.

We're living
in a slow genocide.

That's what's happening here.

I mean, I wanna move to Denver.
I wanna go to Rapid City.

I wanna be coddled

by the comforts of capital,
you know what I'm saying?

I don't wanna spend
my whole life trying to triage

a slow genocide here.

The soft part of me
wants that,

but now that I live here,

um, I-- I see it.

I-- I can't unsee it,
and so, like, that's--

that's just--
it's part of my job now.

It's part of my, uh,

the scope of my work
to try to liberate our people

and more importantly
liberate Mother Earth.

I'm trying my best to--

to preserve and strengthen
the relationship with the state.

They have different plans

than we do as indigenous
or as Native American.

The government
will withhold their funding

if we don't cooperate
with what they want,

and we're still
stuck in that today.

You know, that has caused us
to grow closer,

1to become stronger, to think,

you know,
in unison for, you know,

the betterment
of not just one tribe

but all tribes.

We have long
been represented by people

that didn't even know us.

At the time
that this place was built,

it certainly
wasn't built for me.

With women not having
the right to vote

and Native American people
not being citizens

until 1924,

the odds of me being here

as a Native American woman
and legislator

were really pretty slim.

*

There's great
excitement in being referred to

as the first Native American
woman in the legislature...

but I'm also a citizen

of the Mandan, Hidatsa
and Arikara Nation,

and so I am paying attention
to make sure

that all of our human rights
are being protected

and not minimized
or diminished.

Next, we have Ruth Buffalo,

state representative
for North Dakota, um,

House of Representatives,
27th District.

Good morning.

My name is Ruth Buffalo,
Woman Appears.

Thank you. It's an honor
to be here in front of you

to share
about this important topic.

I have introduced
four legislative bills

which address the epidemic

of missing and murdered
indigenous people

in human trafficking.

We know
that native women,

85% of us in our lifetime

will experience violence.

And that statistic there,

I-- I share a lot
in different talks

to different communities,
but that's--

that's the one
that I feel is most striking.

There are so many
contributing factors

as to why this happens,
but a lot of times predators...

believe that if they target
indigenous women,

nothing is gonna be done.

This legislation has passed
through the North Dakota House

and now awaits action
in the North Dakota Senate.

It's important to know...

At some point
when 15 or 20 or 30 members

of your community
are missing

within a matter of months,
uh, y--

we-- we should all be
concerned about that.

I think there are so many ways
that we can begin to,

uh, remedy the crisis,

but we need to actually
get to work on it.

Thank you,
Representative Ruth Buffalo,

for running
and winning your seat.

You were meant to serve,

and I'm inspired
by the vast amount of work

that you've already done
since you've been in your seat,

so thank you so much for that.

And I want you to know
that I stand behind you 100%.

*

I would say
about six miles from here

it will cross Highway 34,

and then
it's gonna come across

I'm guessing that one,

where all the cedars are,
the green.

If there was an oil spill here,
it's going to the Missouri.

They ain't gonna catch it
in time.

It will empty
into the Missouri.

It will go down
to the Mississippi.

It will go down into the Gulf.

And I know
there was a big gathering

up in North Dakota on--
on the Dakota Access Pipeline.

And whether that's gonna
happen here, we don't know.

But this is it.

Water is life,
but the second part to that

is life is sacred.

All life.
Plant life, our life.

But we-- we can't do it
without water.

*

We're going to talk
about the issues of water,

the ongoing struggle
with Keystone XL.

Um, President...

That's a dirty word.
Excuse me.

I called him President.

Um, that man
in the White House

issued an executive order

that approves
the Keystone XL permit.

I'm gonna seize the mic,

and I'm going to read
this resolution.

There's five of them,

and I would like
a vote by acclamation

so that we can move forward
with these.

Um, time is important

because Keystone XL

is assaulting
Oceti Sakowin aggressively,

and it's taken
three court orders to stop them.

So, I'll start with,
um, the first one.

I want people to understand

that when the tribes
are stepping up

and fighting these things,
there's a reason why.

We depend on the land
to tell our story,

and the evidence
of our existence here

is in things
like stone features,

the places
where we buried our ancestors,

and the places that we know
that we gathered to pray.

Those things
are the most fundamental

even spiritually
that they will, you know,

take that fight
as far as it needs to go.

Motion passed.

The first order
is the resolution

of Oceti Sakowin Oyate
calling for charges

against
Energy Transfer Partners

for acts of genocide
against the Lakota Nation.

I pledge allegiance
to the flag

of the United States of America

and to the Republic
for which it stands...

Some of the recommendations

that I would like
to quickly mention

is a national inquiry
with hearings

held throughout
the United States

in rural and urban areas

to go to the very communities
that suffer the loss

of their loved ones,

to include language
of missing and murdered

indigenous women and--
and girls and people

into the scope of work.

"Whereas Energy Transfer
Partners presided

over the construction
of the Dakota Access Pipeline,

over formal objections
filed by the commission,

whereas Dakota Access Pipeline

is in violation of the
United Nations Declaration

on the rights
of indigenous peoples,

now therefore we resolve

the Council Fires
of Oceti Sakowin Oyate

call for charges
to be brought against

Energy Transfer Partners
for acts constituting--

constituting genocide
against Lakota nation."

Life is sacred. Everybody.

Especially the little ones.

I mean, we're spoiled.
We're older people.

We kind of choose
what we want.

Those little ones,
what choice do they have?

What future do they have?

It's our choices today
as to what they're gonna have.

We need to get back
to who we are as people.

Motion passed.
Thank you very much.

This is my life,
my freedom, my independence.

That's a hard one.

Was a very,
very emotional time for me

because I thought
of my grandparents,

the eight purple hearts
that were in our family

from First World War,
Second World War, Korea.

I asked them
to acknowledge our peace

and cast off
the collective memory of war

and trauma.

*

We are Hunkpapa.

We are Oceti Sakowin.
We are Ihanktonwan.

We are the people on the edge.

We are the horn
of the buffalo,

and we have done our duty

and our responsibility.

to all of you

who have come
from wherever you came.

When they came,
they made the difference.

We felt it.

We knew it that

Obama was pushed politically

to do what he did
to deny that commit.

Our whole community
opened up their arms

to Barack Obama.

And what did he do?

He stayed silent
until the very last minute

when he knew that we were
about to turn the tides

in this entire country.

When you're
using influence

and you can't do it
with the stroke of your pen,

it requires, um, you know,

detailed analysis

on the part
of the federal government,

and we did make that case,

but we didn't make
that case overnight.

Whatever Obama had done
at that point didn't matter.

Trump, who was invested
in the pipeline,

was about to come
into the presidency,

and we knew he was going
to reverse that victory.

This is with respect
to the construction

of the Dakota Access Pipeline.

Okay?

-Thank you very much.
-Thank you, press.

-Thank you, press.
-We're good.

The Dakota Access
Pipeline permit was granted

in the first weeks
of the Trump administration,

and what we did feel

for those of us
in the Obama administration,

is that the only strategy
was to undo

whatever it was that we did.

I don't believe they've had
a tribal nation's conference

since President Obama
left office.

And part of the reason why
when I came in

we started this conference

was to make sure
that we had

a direct nation-to-nation
relationship

with all the different tribes.

And our first thing
was to just listen.

About six months
into the Trump administration,

dozens of us, senior executives
at Interior,

received a late-night email
saying,

"Hey, you've been reassigned."

They didn't talk to any
of the executives ahead of time.

They didn't keep
any paper trail

so they wouldn't be
held accountable

to why they reassigned
different people.

They were clearly
discriminatory

because
a third of those reassigned

were American Indian.

Is this you
discussing Indian blood?

"We're gonna judge people by
whether they have Indian blood

whether they're qualified
to run a gaming casino or not?"

Uh, that probably is me,
absolutely.

Because I'll tell you what,
if you look--

if you look at
some of the reservations

that you've approved,

you, sir, in your great wisdom
have approved,

I will tell you
right now, uh,

they don't look
like Indians to me.

The Department
of the Interior has about

20% of the landmass
of the United States.

U.S. Forest Service,
another 10%.

So, in federal government hands

is about 30%
of the entire United States.

We're here to talk about

how we can create new prosperity
for our citizens

by unlocking vast treasures

of energy reserves,

which we have

a great deal,
far more than anyone understood.

We love Indian country, right?

And look, you know,

having extractive
industry lobbyists

as your spokespersons
for these departments, it--

it only will lead
to more desecration

of Indian land.

The president,
for every regulation put in,

we've removed 22.

Zinke was a congressman,
right?

But he was well known
to be in the pocket

of oil and gas.

Uh, David Bernhardt,
who is now the secretary,

was a lobbyist.

He was actually a lobbyist
for oil, gas, and mining.

I'm going to read you
a definition

of tribal consultation.

And that is "to ensure tribes
have a strong voice

in shaping federal policies

that directly impact
their ability

to govern themselves."

Do you agree
with this definition?

Um, I agree that
that's potentially a definition.

Uh, well, I hope
you agree with it because that--

that is your department's
definition.

I've pushed very strongly
for tribal consultation

in every single thing
that I do.

Whether it's to keep,
you know,

pipelines from--
from being built

or drilling to happen.

If we don't speak out
where and when we can,

then we're foregoing
our obligation

to protect these lands.

-Come on!
-That's her dog.

Why is he
trying to do that?

Here. Here's what we can do.

This is the pond.

-See that old bike?
-Yeah.

I see little kids
do that on their bikes.

They ride up on the side,
and they go all the way around.

That's the kid who fell in.
His bike's still in there.

Yeah. For real.

You gotta let me get off.

Boom. There you go.

Okay.

My back is kinda...

-Ugly.
-Nah.

It's just-- I don't know.

-Ugly?
-Maybe I'm getting old, guys.

Hold on. Oh!

She doesn't want
to go in the water.

Run free, little Oweno.

What is your--
who is your mom and dad?

Frankie White Dress, okay.

I know a guy
named Wallace White Dress.

Is that your uncle?
Do you know?

He has kids with a woman
named Crystal Brave Thunder.

Yeah. Yeah.

Yeah. Yeah.
So, um...

No, no.
Oh, I don't know, I hope not.

I don't know though. I--

No. No.
Must be different ones.

Why? Did somebody lose a kid?

Uh, I can't remember
for sure,

but I think
they're still alive, though.

I don't-- I don't think--

Oh, no How?

How?

Like, a car wreck
or something?

Oh, shit, man.

Oh, that's no good.

A lot of our people
are going through that.

* Imagine what would happen
if our people came together *

* Learned how to heal
and overcame the pain forever *

* There's too much negativity
controlling our emotions *

* Too many distractions

* In the field
with our devotion *

* It's hard to stay committed
to our passion and our craft *

* When so much negativity
will dominate our path *

* I write this for the rez
and the people that I love *

* Prayers can be strong
but sometimes it's not enough *

All that stuff
you guys feel at home,

all that stuff
that you're feeling inside,

put that shit out here.

Leave that out here.

When you're running
and you feel like quitting,

take all that emotion
into that.

Depression and anxiety,

suicidal thoughts creep
into a lot of the kids' mind

because they feel like
there's nothing to live for

and they feel like maybe
whatever's next is better.

*

This is the way
that I'm giving back,

is through giving these kids
something to do,

something positive
to look forward to.

* My biggest inspirations
were Jay-Z and Kanye *

* Everything I write is
sincerely from my cante *

* And everything I do
is for my family *

* Tiwahe *

*

When I was charged
with inciting a riot,

I was facing a total
of six years in prison.

I would have missed
the high school career

of my daughter.

I would have
missed my son,

his wrestling career,
his going to school.

My youngest
would not have known a father

in her most important years.

I have a duty to protect
my children's rights

to clean water
and a healthy environment.

That duty compels me

to place my body
in harm's way.

*

All right.

Have a good day.

Donald Trump
has made it clear

that he intends
to force the army court

to approve this easement

so they could drill
under the river,

and we just
can't have that.

So, if you can come here,

be ready, uh,
for whatever happens.

We are all unarmed.

We are all non-violent.

But we are committed
to making a stand out here.

You're not allowed
to be on this property.

It is private property.

If you do not leave,
you'll be arrested.

-Stay back.
-You're the one with a gun.

-Stay back.
-Come on, now.

I will stand forever!

Even when this pipeline
goes through.

Look at my face!

Remember me!

*

No matter where we go,

we're taking
a piece of this fire with us.

When we march out of here,

when we go our own ways.

I love all of you.

And I'll see you again soon.

Thank you all.

*

So, three years have passed.

What does this mean?

The groups are small,
compared to the 50,000 people

that came here
and stood with us

in this beautiful river valley.

*

I truly believe that...

how the camp came to be

was prophecy.

How the camp ended

was the way
it was supposed to be

because it was just
a vision for us

to see how we could
live again as people.

Because for some people
out there in-- in America,

they have no concept of home.

They have places to live,

but they have
no concept of home,

where people
help each other.

Despite everything else,
despite the trauma

that they caused us
over there,

despite all that,

what I've seen in camp
was healing.

What I've seen in camp,

I truly can believe
could save us,

is learning that compassion
for each other.

We step here on this land

where roots go right out of
our feet down into the earth,

and they cannot separate us.

We are not
from anyplace else.

There are people
buried all through here,

'cause I remember
my auntie telling me

they're just not marked,

'cause they didn't do that.

This was a whole community
at one time...

but nobody
wanted to listen to us.

They're listening now.

And we're not done yet.

We're done
when I dig up that pipeline.

Mmm.

-We're done when it's gone.
-Yeah.

-Then--
-And we're coming for them.

Everybody put your hands
up in the sky right now.

Put your peace signs up.
Put your fists up in the air.

My man, Stuart James,
let's get it.

* About to run up
on the president right now *

* Pull up with my natives

* Have a powwow
in the White House *

* They never gave a fuck
about us, so we down to ride *

* This is for my people reppin'
out there on the front lines *

The Indigenous Peoples
March is-- is standing up,

trying to put the spotlight back
on our brothers and sisters

who are fighting
big financial extraction.

Everybody here
marches for a different reason,

but we're all marching
to the same beat

of the same drum.

* My tribe, it barely survived

* The pillage
that tried to kill us *

* Time prohibits

Put your hands up. Yo, hey.

* But, see, my natives, though
they're all business *

* I'm ignoring all the critics
we got more than just exhibits *

*

Water is life!

Water is life!

Warm up.
Warm up a little bit.

It's a great day
to be Indigenous, isn't it?

I-- I feel the power
in this group of people.

I'm so happy
that you all are here.

It's an important time
in our country's history,

in our world's history.

It's time for us
to make a move.

It's time for us
to stand up for the environment.

It's time for us
to stand up for our people.

The U.S. government,

they can make
all the promises they want,

but they actually have
a real responsibility

toward Indian tribes.

That has been, uh, ruled
over and over again.

They don't have
a way out of that.

I intend
to make my voice heard

in this Congress
and hopefully

gain the support
of my colleagues

in-- in making sure
that we can start

to remedy those wrongs.

I want you to know
that I intend to do that

right here,
right in this city,

right in this--
on this Indian land

so that we can all have
a good future for our kids.

I recognize
every single person here,

and I thank you all so much

for caring enough
about our future

that you would come and share
this day with us today.

Having the first two
Native American women

ever elected to Congress,

I think that gives
a lot of people hope,

but we can't stop there.

Native women, native people,

we can have all
the best ideas in the world,

but unless we're
in decision-making positions

to change what's happening
in this country,

things will stay the same.

So I encourage
every single Native American,

uh, to think about
running for office

and above all,

to make their voices heard
at the ballot box.

The American Indian people's

right to self-determination
is recognized

and will be implemented
through the following policies.

The American Indian individual
shall have the right

to choose
his or her citizenship,

and the American Indian
Nations

have the right to choose
their level of citizenship

and autonomy

up to absolute independence.

The American Indian will have

their just property rights
restored, which include

rights of easement,
access, hunting,

fishing, prayer,

and water.

In 1975,
Russell Means was shot

on Standing Rock.

And I went to see him,
and I talked to him.

I said "What's the most
important thing

that we have to do?"

And he said,
"We have to do the UN work.

We have to petition
and open an office

like the chiefs asked."

So by 1976,

we opened an office
across the United Nations

in New York City,

in 1977
began the petition

for the United Nations

Declaration on the Rights
of Indigenous Peoples,

which lasted for 37 years.

I'm showing now

the 30 years or 40 years

that it took for the adoption
of the UN Declaration,

which is, of course,

our international
legal foundation,

uh, for the rights-based
approach that we utilize

in all of
the international work we do.

These are, uh,
some of our leaders

walking into United Nations
for the very first time

in 1977.

After many years
of demonstrations

and protests
and, uh, clamoring

to even have a voice,
to even be allowed in the room

when negotiations about
climate change were going on,

finally, after Paris,

they did recognize
in the Paris Agreement,

the contributions of Indigenous
peoples' traditional knowledge.

I think, traditionally,
scientists have not respected

Indigenous knowledge

until you put it in terms
that they understand,

like, "What would you give

for thousands of years
of observation?"

They go, "Oh, my God,
that would be great.

'Cause all we have is 30."

Well, you get thousands of years
of observation

if you ask people that
have been living on those lands

and sharing their
oral histories with each other

and talking about
when do you pick the berries,

when does this plant come out,

when does this flower
come out,

when do
the caribou migrate,

when do the fish
come up the river.

And this is a breakthrough

not just with recognition
of the importance

of Indigenous peoples'
contributions,

not just our complaints
of violations,

but our actual contributions

to international discussions
on this topic in particular

that affects
each and every one of us.

We need to honor that
and acknowledge it

and-- and put them out front.

A lot of people
say it's-- it's--

we should be giving them
a seat at the table,

but clearly,
it's their table.

They should be
leading this stuff.

But the challenges
will be to implement

a rights safeguard

and real participation.

Of key importance for us

despite anything that happens

or doesn't happen
at,

a passing on
our traditional knowledge,

um, to our
younger generations.

Thank you.

They can't put
300 million woke people

in prison in this country.

They can't do that.

But until we find it
within ourselves to stand up,

they're gonna continue
to isolate us,

put us in fear.

That's why it's so important
for us to build bridges.

This isn't a white people/
Indian people thing.

This is all of us
having to come together

to protect what's ours.

To see my daughter here,
I mean,

the younger generation

has to take the strength
of the prior generation

and go further,
go harder, and be stronger.

Sometimes we need to get out
of our younger generation's way.

Want to introduce
Tokata Iron Eyes.

She is a member of the
Standing Rock Sioux Reservation.

Where are all
my Indigenous peoples at?

Make some noise.

Whoo!

Where are the young people at?

If you look back far enough,

every single one of us
has ancestors,

has people who knew
how to live in harmony

with the land,
with the waters,

with the animals,

and that is what it means
to be Indigenous.

It is time
to take that back.

That part of ourselves
that has been taken from us,

it is time to regain that,

and it happens
by coming to marches like this.

It happens
by sharing our stories.

It happens by speaking up
about injustices

so that one day
our daughters

don't have to
put up with this.

To all of our
Indigenous sisters out there

and to all of the families
who came from the reservations,

I wanna say thank you to you
for coming out

and I'm so sorry,

because I know
that some of you

are missing your daughters,

missing your family members.

And to any young girl

who's missing right now,

we want you home,
we miss you,

and it's time
to make a change.

Bring our sisters home.

Listen. Listen to this.

* Identified by
my enrollment number *

* My ancestors felt
the coldest summers *

* Stripped of our rights
were confined in a camp *

* Reservation living
is designed like a trap *

* The government is foul
heartless and deceitful *

* They made a policy
for the removal of my people *

* Women and children murdered
as they were defenseless *

* My people lay dead
in mass graves and trenches *

* The list of injustices
against us is endless *

* Everything that happened
is too real to handle *

* Defeated this country
on the field of battle *

* Little Bighorn
200 years later *

* They kill us off slowly
trying to settle the score *

* Alcoholism got us
dead on the floor *

* All of our problems
are the first to be ignored *

* We used to be the victim
but we're ready for war now *

* Unified, unified, unified

* We better than drugs,
suffering for suicide *

* Who's the real terrorist
I'm gonna let you decide *

* They don't give a damn
about you and I *

* About to run up
on the president right now *

* Pull up with my natives
have a powwow in the *

* White House

* They never gave a fuck
about us, so we down to ride *

* This is for my people

* Reppin' out there
on the front lines *

Hello, my relatives.

I am an Oglala Lakota,

and I come from
a very sacred holy land...

The Black Hills.

American Indians
are human beings.

We are supposed to be citizens
of the United States of America.

We fought in your wars
in other countries.

The fact is,

every time the U.S. government

has interfered with
American Indian lifestyles,

it has been proven
to be disastrous.

Leaders are supposed to work

for a better quality of life
for their constituents.

It is an insult to my heritage,

my ancestors, and my dignity
as an Oglala Lakota

to have the term
used loosely.

*

So the DAPL decision

is a sweet moment in time.

My rallying cry from day one

has always been,

"If America
is still a republic

and it's governed
by the Constitution

of the United States

and treaties are
the supreme law of the land,

we will prevail."

But the fight is on.

At a new level,

at the highest level
in this country.

We're ready for a challenge.

Okay, at this time,
we're gonna go

into our third session here

at the 33rd annual

Porcupine Powwow and Wacipi.

Carrying in the United States
American flag,

,

United States Marine Corps,
Operation Iraqi Freedom,

Operation Enduring Freedom.

Carrying in a Murdered
and Missing Indian Women flag,

served in the United States
Army, Melanie Howard.

Let's give our veterans
a big round of applause

for being here with us.

Now our royalty, once again,

first of all,
Miss Cheyenne River.

Indigenous peoples carry

a huge amount
of responsibility.

80% of the world's
remaining biodiversity

is in Indigenous communities.

And that biodiversity

is the lifeline
of the world as we know it.

Those places
and those ecosystems

are being taken care of

and protected
by Indigenous nations

whose rights
are being infringed upon

every waking minute.

When our law and order

doesn't protect

my child's right
to clean drinking water,

doesn't protect people,

doesn't protect Mother Earth,

when our version
of law and order

only protects
capital and property,

then that law and order
deserves to be challenged.

We definitely
need to continue having

these difficult conversations

and also to not forget

that we must let
Indigenous people

drive these conversations
forward,

because we've had
so many others

speak for us
or on our behalf.

But we're here,
we're still here,

and we have voices,
and we're very capable

to educate others.

You always hear that history

is told by the victor.

Whether or not that's true,

I think for us,
we need to define that history

and tell that narrative
for that next generation

and we need to take control

of our cultural history
by doing that.

We need
to do the work ourselves,

because in reality,

we are the front lines

of this new generation,

which is starting

upon this process
of decolonization.

No one's done this before.
Right?

We are taking the first steps

towards a new way of life.

Take courage. Be bold.

Do not wait for permission

to make those changes
within ourselves

and within our peoples
and nations

which will create
a different reality,

one which does not destroy
Mother Earth,

one which respects
our common humanity

and carries us to new days.

The Lakota people,
Dakota people, Nakota...

have come full circle.

We have endured and survived

the most incredible odds.

The masterminds

of massacre and death
for our people

didn't succeed.

It's our time.

There is no end.

*

*

*