Dorothy Sun Bear - CATKA WINYAN
OGLALA SIOUX - PINE RIDGE INDIAN RESERVATION, SOUTH DAKOTA
supervising the WOUNDED KNEE camp KITCHEN

My grandson showed me a video of a grandma who was tackled by a sheriff. She had no assistance. No one came to her aid.  Then he showed me another video of some young men running to the field, and the police were chasing them.  And he said, "Grandma you want to go there?" And so I said yeah. And so we packed up and he rallied the tribe and the tribe supported the camp, and they got two buses and that's how we got here, on August 13th. 

It's time to stand up, and that's what we did. We all felt that in our hearts, everyone that is here. This is our land. This is our country. This is our continent. Our ancestors knew it as Turtle Island. And we want it back now because they are destroying the world.  We are going to the frontline to defend Mother Earth. We are Mother Earth’s army. Elder women are asked for guidance and so we tell what we can, what we know. We share all our knowledge.

Women march through Oceti Sakowin Camp for a prayer ceremony at the base of Turtle Island. Photo by Tania Ellersick

When it is a native cause here in America it is a media blackout. But I am really grateful for social media ‘cause that's how a lot of that information went out, and we want everyone in the world to know we are at peace, we are unarmed and they are the terrorists pointing guns at us every day. That's an act of war.

The peace treaties the U.S. Government signed with my ancestors, they've never kept their part. We are on treaty land and exercising our treaty rights. This is our land already. They are not going to make us move. We are here to stay. 

We need to save mother earth. There is no other planet to jump on.

Police encamped on Turtle Island. Photo by Heather Wilson