NEWS
SHS supports Sioux, stops DAPL HANNAH MAY co executive editor-in-chief 173130@sycamoreschools.org
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ontroversy over the construction of the Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL) has exploded into a nationwide conflict within the span of a few weeks. Hundreds of people across the country involved themselves in the issue as DAPL hashtags flooded social media. “What really brought the pipeline to my attention was Twitter. I saw the ‘NoDAPL’ hashtag trending. As I researched more of the injustices that the Sioux tribe face, ... I wanted to become a part of the movement towards equality,” said Stephanie Mather, 12. Mather brought the conflict to SHS by starting a donation box at the school. “The idea to start a donation box came to me on Thanksgiving. The
protectors of Standing Rock used that day to set up a demonstration in the middle of the city to show what Thanksgiving means to the natives,” Mather said. She hung flyers and posted about the opportunity for SHS students to help the cause on social media. “As I watched the demonstration on livestream, I felt compelled to join the protest - I even looked for flights to Standing Rock. But, when I realized that dropping out of school and going to North Dakota was a bit unrealistic, I started researching what I could do here, in Cincinnati,” Mather said. The proposed project to build a $3.8 billion pipeline from North Dakota to Illinois as a way to transport crude oil was widely contested by supporters and members of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe.
Opposer to the DAPL argue that it would impose upon tribal lands and destroy tribal artifacts. It would also be hazardous to the water supply. For months, protesters had been camped out at the Standing Rock site of construction, delaying production. The Army Corp of Engineers announced on Sun. Dec. 4 that it will not grant a permit for the DAPL to cross under Lake Oahe in North Dakota, the debated land. “I loved seeing that people [at SHS] were working to bring change. The fact that the pipeline plans were moved from Standing Rock is a huge victory because it shows that our voices are not going unheard,” Mather said. The DAPL is in the process of looking for an alternate route.
PROTECT. Thousands of natives, environmentalists, and veterans stay at a campsite on the Sioux Tribe land in North Dakota. The argument over the construction of the Dakota Access Pipeline expanded into a conversation of both cultural and social interactions on social media. People across the country became involved and donated items such as blankets to the protestors. Photo courtesy of MCT Campus. 4|THE LEAF|January 31, 2017|SHSLEAF.ORG