Drop the Charges Against Amy Goodman and Other Journalists Covering #NoDAPL
The images are shocking: security guards, armed with dogs and pepper spray, attacking peaceful Native Americans marching against the Dakota Access Pipeline. The footage is a brutal reminder that those in power will do anything to stop people from standing against injustice.1
The pipeline has faced strong resistance from the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe and members of 280 other tribes in the United States and Canada, not to mention countless other groups working in solidarity. The activism has led to a temporary stay on the project, and journalists are needed on the ground now more than ever as the fight continues.
But authorities want to silence the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe's brave fight to prevent the pipeline's construction through its sacred land.
If the authorities in Morton County and the company seeking to build the Dakota Access Pipeline had their way, the world wouldn't see their horrific acts or their total disregard for the land and water rights of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe. Morton County's actions are designed to intimidate journalists like Amy Goodman and to silence the indigenous coalition that has stepped up to safeguard access to clean water.
Tell Morton County State's Attorney Allen Koppy to drop the charges against Goodman and everyone exercising their First Amendment rights to report on this story.
1. "FULL Exclusive Report: Dakota Access Pipeline Co. Attacks Native Americans with Dogs & Pepper Spray," Democracy Now!, Sept. 6, 2016: http://www.democracynow.org/2016/9/6/full_exclusive_report_dakota_access_pipeline