Engaging in Dakota Access Pipeline: Protesting

Savanah Archer, Charlie Duffy, Elijah Matheny

Introduction and Rhetorical Context

During June of 2016, Energy Transfer Partners started the construction of the Dakota Access

Pipeline. The Dakota Access Pipeline is an underground oil pipeline situated in the United

States. It extends 1,172 miles from North Dakota to Illinois. It involves Native American land

and indigenious people, specifically the Sioux and the Standing Rock tribe, as well as reporters,

journalists, protesters, executives, land owners and the army corporation. There is one side that

sees this pipeline as useful and necessary. The other side is those who see this pipeline as

harmful, unnecessary, and invasion of indigenous people’s land.

Though the protesters faced terrible and violent conditions to fight for their cause, they were not

able to stop the construction of the pipeline. The protesters were largely peaceful, but the

security teams hired by the Big Oil companies were not. “The activists were pepper-sprayed,

arrested, hosed down with water cannons, and shot with rubber bullets' ' (Treuer, 2019).

Many hashtags and taglines were created during this protest to exemplify support for Standing

Rock, including the Mni Wiconi phrase, meaning ​Water is Sacred​ in Lakota. It spoke to the

dangers the Pipeline posed to the Standing Rock Sioux’s drinking water, but it also spoke to a

much bigger problem of stolen Indigenous resources and destruction of native land throughout

history.
Research Problem, Aims, and Question(s)

The focal topic of this study is the protest by the Standing Rock Sioux and their allies

surrounding the implementation of the Dakota Access Pipeline.​ ​Within this topic we are focusing

on three specific aspects: history, social media, and the physical protests.

This topic is worth investigating because protest holds a vastly important role in United States

history; it is the basis of all civil rights movements and can manifest in so many different forms,

like rallies, marches, riots, boycotts, etc.. This intricate history, plus the introduction to new

technologies, specifically the internet and social media, have greatly affected the way protests

are planned and carried out, and have even introduced new forms of protest.

The physical act of protest in and of itself also plays an important and noteworthy role, whether

you look at the significance of the protest lands themselves, or the tangible obstacles faced by

protesters on those lands. Understanding the history and context of all of these items is vital to

understanding the greater topic of the Dakota Access Pipeline and the impact it has had on

Native American lives.

We are attempting to achieve this understanding by asking three specific questions:

1. How has the history of Native American protest led the way to the current DAPL

protesting climate?

2. What physical challenges did the protestors face at camps like Oceti Sakowin?

3. How does social media impact the production of protesting DAPL?

With these questions leading us, We aim to understand the Dakota Access Pipeline to its full

extent.
Literature Review and Theoretical Framework

The Dakota Access Pipeline protesting has been a prime example of how the posthumanism

perspective needs to take place and ‘we’ as humans need to incorporate posthuman thinking in

our daily lives.

Planetary could have taken effect during the time of the pipeline being built. Braidotti uses the

term planetary in contrast to humans exploiting the Earth. The Earth is “a unique, indivisible,

self-regulating community of interrelated being... “The planetary system can be taken as a

critique of the prot-minded logic of globalization” (Braidotti 318). Obviously Braidottis term of

Planetary goes perfectly with the Dakota Access Pipeline. The government is exploiting the land

and the indigneous [Link] have exploited the earth. This is what posthumanism is trying

to not only point out but offer action in through ways of science, physics, philosophy,

psychology, gender, politics, and movements. This is also where posthuman performativity

comes to play in which we were educated by Barad. Posthuman Performativity is a developing

theory from which Barad persuades “humans'' to focus less on the power of words and the use of

linguistics such as descriptions and critique to go into action, practices and doings. So, while

words have power, they can’t represent everything. Posthuman performativity is also correlated

with ‘intra-action’ which in very simplistic terms means everything is moving and that

historically it always has been. It is a concept of physics. While social media does not have the

full power compared to physically protesting on the ground, the words and pictures have

movement to each individual in which to get the protesting to happen. Based on the date

collected, The protests would not have been as big or effective without social media. The

platforms such as facebook, twitter and instagram have a limitation in a sense. They could be
unreliable, biased, or outdated since anyone can say what they want on their posts. However,

these words when seen as true are what lead to action. Hence the understanding of “intra-action”.

The protests being held wouldn't be as powerful or moving if it wasn't for the spotlight of social

media to get people there.

Posthumanism is all about intra-action. It is less critique using linguistics and more of an

empowerment through practice and action. All of these terms fall into the great understanding of

our posthuman knowledge that Braidotti has given us. The simplest way to understand

posthumanism, is that everything, human and non-human, is connected. Nothing at all on this

planet is on top. Posthumanism is an acknowledgment and respect for all living and nonliving

pieces of matter. Posthumanism is not only just the acknowledgement and respect of being all

connected, but it is also a push and suggestion if we want to save and produce a better life for

this planet, people, animals, plants, buildings and all matte

Propen spends considerable time defining ​agency​ within the ​anthropocene​ to raise questions of

ethical obligation. In the case of the Dakota Access Pipeline, the indigenious people and their

sacred land are agencies lacking in consideration. The protestors who gathered to fight the

installation of the pipeline, demanded that their voices be heard. In a posthuman context, their

opinions would have been considered as important as any other, and the US government and

Energy Transfer would have had an obligation to consider these opinions before going through

with their plans.

In ​Posthuman Knowledge​, Rosi Braidotti writes “Posthuman subjectivity is a transversal alliance

that nowadays involves non-human agents” (Braidotti 46). This is certainly true in the case of the

Dakota Access Pipeline, where the geographical features in the area held agency. Braidotti
continues, writing “This means that the posthuman subject relates at the same time to the Earth…

and to technological agents…” (Braidotti 46). By considering both one enters an interesting line

of thinking, here we find the theoretical framework we must start with to begin our analysis of

DAPL. Braidotti concludes, “this transversal range reflects and sustains the posthuman

convergence, so that the frame and scope of… ethical subjectivity is enlarged along the lines of

posthumanist and post-anthropocentric relations and the multiple perspectives that inhabit them.”

(Braidotti 46). Here Braidotti outlines the reasoning behind the importance of this framework. As

does Propen, both scholars understand the need to define agency in order to raise questions of

ethical obligation.

Compassionate conservation​, a term used by Propen, presents the idea that each individual life is

as deserving and important as the next, and advocates for a “peaceful coexistence between

humans and nonhuman animals”. It stresses the importance of placing nonhumans on a level

playing field with humans​. She also brings in terms like ​trans-corporeality a​ nd ​agential realism

to further explain the necessity of taking a step back from the way we as humans are used to

thinking and beginning to understand that the environment and nonhuman animals around us can

hold agency and importance. This way of thinking of humans and nonhumans as on the same

playing field is imperative in the continuous struggle to protect the environment from both

human and nonhuman harm. ​Propen’s argument seems to ask that we take a step back from our

human point-of-view, and observe, think about, or create ideas from the point of view of

non-human actors, while also making sure to not delve into antihumanism. It also emphasizes

that the way humanity interacts with the world should not be considered the most important

interaction—even though it seems like we cause the most change, whether good or bad—but
instead should be seen as something placed alongside non-human interactions. Propen then

brings these ideas into the concept of conservation and how we can use these altered points of

view to see the world around us in a new light. ​ This applies to DAPL in the sense that this is so

much more than a human vs human issue. Though the voices of the Native Americans affected

should be raised as high as possible, a lot of their objections are rooted in the pipeline’s potential

destruction of the environment around them and the Indigenous Nations’ deep respect for

protecting the nature around them.

Tara Houska speaking at a protest event called ‘From Standing Rock to Burnaby Mountain: Can
Direct Action Stop New Pipelines?’ Photo by John Duffy.​
Discussion of Method
Savanah examined 3 social media platforms. These platforms included Instagram, Facebook, and

Twitter. Savanah focused on numbers such as how many followers to pages she found that were

related to the protesting of DAPL. She also examined the amount of likes and comments. She

looked through instagram at different pictures and saw the difference of data bettween Facebook,

Instagram and Twitter. She wanted to see how they worked differently and possibly what social

media posts made the most impact during the protesting.

Charlie examined sources from The Guardian, NPR, and CNN, to develop a national context for

the protests. Information from The Guardian provides a complete breakdown of the events, while

NPR does the same but two years after the peak of the protests. CNN contributed great images

that helped to visual and understand what the feelings were like in the now famous protest camps

in North Dakota.

Elijah examined two books on the history of Indigenous people in the United States, ​The

Heartbeat of Wounded Knee ​and ​An Indigenous Peoples’ History of the United States​, as well as

a single chapter of ​Racism After Apartheid: Challenges for Marxism and Anti-Racism t​ itled “The

International Indigenous Peoples’ Movement: A Site of Anti-Racist Struggle Against

Capitalism”.
Presentation of Analysis

Historical: ​In ​An Indigenous Peoples’ History of the United States​,​ ​Dunbar-Ortiz recounts the

multiple Native American groups that were formed to fight for Indigenous rights in the 60s and

70s, including the National Indian Youth Council, the National Congress of American Indians,

the American Indian Movement, and the Native American Rights Fund. Eight of these groups,

made up of 75 Indigenous nations in total, worked together to organize “The Trail of Broken

Treaties” in 1972. During this protest, hundreds of people occupied the Bureau of Indian Affairs

building and stayed there for 6 days, reading the seemingly endless documents detailing the

federal government’s mistreatment of Native tribes. This protest set the precedent for solidifying

many other Native American rights groups as well as civil rights acts. This is just one of the

instances of impactful Indigenous protests that Dunbar-Ortiz details.

In ​The Heartbeat of Wounded Knee, ​Treuer describes how Native American community and

protest from the 1990s-2015 seemed “pointillist”, meaning there were many high points which

combined together created a strong sense of community and resilience. From this strength were

the Standing Rock Sioux and their allies able to fight so thoroughly and passionately when the

Dakota Access Pipeline protests began. Treuer goes on to explain that the Standing Rock Sioux

only filed a case against the DAPL under the National Historic Preservation Act, and ​not​ other

acts like the Clean Water Act or the Rivers and Harbors Act, even though these were also

relevant. Despite this, the overall protest encapsulated all of these aspects and more, calling for

more protection for Native American resources and land. It also called for us to rethink our
government as a whole, asking ourselves how we allowed a government to be created that cares

more for private companies than for the people of the country and the common good.

As mentioned, the blame cannot only be placed on the U.S. government as a whole, but also on

​ unbar-Ortiz
the private companies who only care about profit. In ​Racism After Apartheid, D

describes the idea of “racial capitalism”, and how bulldozing over Native Americans rights and

lives in the beginning of colonial America led to this country’s current capitalist climate.

American settlers used the Doctrine of Discovery to force Indigenous people from their homes at

the colonists’ and government’s will, sparing no thought to the lives of the people they were

forcing out. The repercussions of these actions are still felt today, deeply and intergenerationally,

in all Native American tribes across the U.S.. This can especially be seen in the DAPL protests,

where the Standing Rock Sioux fought and are still fighting for their right to exist in the

environment around them, and for that environment to stay untouched and unharmed by people

who do not have their best interests at heart.

Physical: ​The Dakota Access Pipeline is a 1,172 mile pipeline designed to move 570,000 barrels

of crude oil a day. It was built by Dakota Access, a subsidiary of Energy Transfer. The main

protest camp, called Oceti Sakowin (meaning “Seven Councils Fire”), grew to over 1,000 people

at its peak. When he visited in September of 2016, photographer Larry Towell of CNN estimated

a total of 5,000 protesters across the various campsites. The protests aimed to remain peaceful

and nonviolent, though there were a few clashes between protestors and law enforcement, and

over 400 arrests were made on the site. On October 27, 2016, there were 142 people arrested,
making it the highest toll for a single day during the protests. Towell considered that there were

“hundreds” of law enforcement officials on site, armed with tear-gas and rubber bullets. The

protestors who had gathered with the intention of remaining peaceful were out-armed.

Additionally, the protestors faced a winter of dangerous colds and record snowfall. The area

received 53.1 inches (over 4 feet) of snowfall before New Years. Still the protestors occupied the

camps for nearly 11 months from April 2016 through February 2017.

The Guardian notes that the protestors continually expressed their hope that protests would

remain peaceful and nonviolent. Activists performed sit-ins and prayer circles on land where

construction was planned, occupying the area in an attempt to slow down the pipeline’s progress.

Elder’s were involved but mainly it was youth leaders who found their way to the frontlines,

where they faced mace and rubber bullets among other threats made by law enforcement

officials. ​The Morton County Sheriff’s Office, along with Cass County law enforcement and

supporting police agencies from across the state formed a united front to aggressively target

those attempting to stop the construction of the pipeline.

NPR revisited the case two years after the protests reached their peak in the Fall of 2016. The

source notes the division in the community left behind after the protestors. They say that local

residents in the area, mostly white, view the protests as rude and obnoxious. Despite the protests

and opposition from then President Obama, the oil industry in North Dakota is now booming

under the support of President Trump. At the time of the article’s publication, multiple lawsuits

were still ongoing. This includes the protestors lawsuit of the police for using unnecessary force
and another lawsuit from the company who built the pipeline, Energy Transfer, against

environmental groups who inspired the protests.

Benazir Wehelie of CNN spoke with photographer Larry Towell, who spent some time at the

sites of protests of the Dakota Access Pipeline. The photographs Towll captured are stunning and

he says they tell the story of a new civil rights movement forming in America, now involving a

different ethnic minority from the movements of the past. Towell noted seeing all sorts of people

formed to fight the cause in North Dakota, not just people of native descent.

Social Media: ​Findings & Data: On ​Facebook​, the biggest community organization for not

supporting the Dakota Access Pipeline is the “Standing Rock Dakota Access Pipeline

Opposition”. This is the biggest community based on the number of followers and their activity.

They have ​132,683​ people who follow their account and almost ​133,000​ people who like their

account and share their posting activity.

This community is connected directly to the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe. Their last post

contained the latest movement happening with DAPL and posted a direct link to [Link]

which is a team of lawyers whose mission is to protect the environment.

The link of their post :

[Link]

es-down-dapl-permits?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&fbclid=IwAR0IlB9SnFihO

C4i3Atq7IqLt2aYZfmG_gxBNej86DlFjS3Rl7XXW7O6aPA
They also post events and protests coming up as well as petitions to sign.

The official Dakota Access Pipeline Facebook page only has 312 people who follow their

account. Their official statement about who they are on their page states,

“​The Dakota Access Pipeline is a 1,172-mile underground state-of-the-art 30” pipeline

extending from the Bakken/Three Forks production area in North Dakota to Patoka,

Illinois. The pipeline transports up to 570,000 barrels per day of domestically produced,

light, sweet crude oil from North Dakota to major refining markets in a more direct,

cost-effective, safer and more environmentally responsible manner than other modes of

transportation, including rail or truck. The pipeline began service on June 1, 2017.”

Their Facebook page has a direct link to the Official Dakota Access Pipeline Website which is

[Link]
 This is the facebook page of Standing Rock Dakota Access Pipeline Organization in which they

posted a link to a political aspect of the protesting.

On ​Twitter​, the first thing that pops up when you search “Dakota Access Pipeline” is the

“Dakota Access Pipeline Facts” which is DAPL’s official twitter account. It has 7332 followers.

When I searched #NoDAPL, many pages came up that had a lot of support. The one with the

most followers was one from @mkpost and it had 13,200 followers.

On ​Instagram

When searching “Dakota Access Pipeline” the pictures to come up were all pictures that were in

opposition of DAPL. Out of the 100 pictures that I looked at, none of them were pages in support

of DAPL. Many of the pictures were moving and emotional.

[Link]
General Discussion

Indigenous people in America have had a long history of being routinely ignored and suppressed

by the U.S. government, businesses, and non-native citizens. This is made obvious through the

numerous instances of protests by Indigenous tribes and nations to fight for things so seemingly

simple as the right to their own land, clean water, and other legal recognition. Many protests

since the 1960s have involved Native American rights groups occupying land (Alcatraz,

Wounded Knee, etc.) and have largely been nonviolent in nature. Yet law enforcement,

government agencies, and private companies very often reacted violently. Despite this,

Indigenous groups have continued to undergo excessive violence and harsh conditions to

challenge the unfair and oppressive tactics used to silence their voices.

The protestors endured a hard, challenging winter of dangerous colds and record snowfall. The

snow totals in the area eclipsed four feet before New Years. Still, the protestors gathered to fight

to protect their rightful lands, even though the protestors knew they would be out-numbered and

out-armed by the opposing law enforcement. Society, or in this case Energy Transfer, overlooked

the effects that their plans for an oil pipeline would have on the native people that occupy the

area. Even further, the corporation ignored their objections when construction was set to begin.

Finally, in the face of protest, law enforcement took to force against them. Though the protestors

arrived with peaceful intentions, they were subjected to rubber bullets and tear gas from the

hundreds of officers called to the site. It does not take much consideration to figure there must

have been a better way to handle this situation. Using a theoretical framework from posthuman

thinking, we were able to analyze the situation and create some alternative ideas that we hope

make the situation seem less complex and may help lead to some beneficial conclusions.
In light of the data collected from the social media point of view of protesting, it is easy to see

that social media had a major impact on the protesting of DAPL. Social media was a direct aid in

the production of social media. Every post, comment, and like button helped spread awareness of

what was happening. It was used as a tool to sign petitions, construct meeting times and places to

protes, as well as personal testimonies and stories that no one would be able to ignore. There

were many injustice actions caused on the indegenious tribes and protests that are shown all over

Facebook, Instagram, and twitter. It is undeniable that the Dakota Access Pipeline ignored the

tribes and citizens and did what they wanted to do with no intention of stopping.

Conclusion

To conclude, the research and data collected helped lead our group to a deeper understanding of

posthumanism through the DAPL controversy.

If we were to continue our research, I think it would be very interesting to see how COVID-19

has impacted DAPL and protesting of DAPL.

It will be interesting to see the protesting continue during COVID-19. ​People are protesting the

lockdown and social distancing. How were they treated while protesting? More questions that

could be researched if we incorporated COVID-19 into DAPL would be:

1. Will this virus affect protesting/protestors in a positive or negative way?​

2. Will there be lawsuits from the indigenous tribes now that the pipeline is finished? ​

3. Will protestors start to give up and lose momentum? ​

4. Do the Native people receive stimulus checks from the U.S. Government to assist them

through the quarantine period?​

Due to the length of the paper, our group work looked different compared to other projects we

have worked on. Instead of splitting different parts of the assignment off, we were all hands on

deck in each category we needed to complete. We all worked on the introduction & rhetorical

context, research problem, aims, and questions, literature review and theoretical framework,

discussion of method, presentation of analysis, general discussion, and conclusion. It was truly

a team effort in which we all collaborated each step of the way.

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