Dozens of people gathered at the Peace Bridge in Calgary to support protesters who are camped out at the Dakota Access Pipeline Sunday.
The Calgary rally was organized to draw attention to the protests that have been going on since April. More than 90 indigenous groups who say the pipeline is a threat to the Missouri River, which is the main water supply for the nearby Standing Rock reservation.
READ MORE: Dakota Access pipeline protest gets boost of faith as clergy stand with Standing Rock Sioux
It’s one of many events that have been organized around the world to draw attention to the concerns of the Standing Rock Sioux and push elected officials to call for a halt to construction of the $3.8 billion project that’s to carry North Dakota oil through South Dakota and Iowa to a shipping point in Illinois.
The tribe believes the pipeline that will skirt its reservation, threatens its drinking water and cultural sites.
READ MORE: Standing Rock protesters say police put them in ‘dog kennels,’ marked them with numbers
More than a hundred people have been arrested during the protests.
“All of us have been watching the news that is been going on in South Dakota and when I started watching the news it was making me cry. I was crying everyday thinking of my grandchildren and my great-grandchildren, thinking of my brothers and sisters in South Dakota and what they’re going through – fighting for us
here in Canada, fighting for all of us,” Marsia Big Snake, rally organizer, said.
“Let’s do something for the future generations, so we have water for her (mother nature) children and to keep our people safe in South Dakota. It’s time to start making right choices and as a grandmother, I’m taking on the traditional role, As a true grandmother, we pray for all people,” Big Snake said. “Why are we hurting her? This is our mother. This is our mother, so we need to save her and heal her – that’s why we are here.”
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