Tribal Members Sue Trump Administration to Block Dakota Access Pipeline
Jumping Eagle v. Trump
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: February 27, 2017
Contact: Tangerine Bolen, 503-887-0773, tangerine.bolen@revolutiontruth.org
Oceti Sakowin Tribal Members Sue Trump Administration to Block Dakota Access Pipeline
‘Jumping Eagle v. Trump’ Emergency Motion Asserts Tribal Members’ Freedom from Racial, Religious and Environmental Discrimination
Washington, DC—Civil liberties group RevolutionTruth along with lead counsel Bruce Afran filed a lawsuit this evening in US District Court on behalf of nearly a dozen plaintiffs from several Oceti Sakowin (Great Sioux Nation) tribes. The plaintiffs in Jumping Eagle v. Trump demand an immediate halt to Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL) construction beneath Lake Oahe, which provides them water for drinking, agriculture and sacred ceremonies, as well as drinking water for nearly 20 million people downriver.
"By forcing the US Army Corps to essentially refute its own conclusions and end its review, President Trump effectively ordered it to grant the Lake Oahe easement,” said Bruce Afran, lead counsel on Jumping Eagle v. Trump. “This is direct interference by the President into the authority and mission of an independent expert agency."
Running DAPL beneath Lake Oahe ignores the serious risks noted by pipeline-construction experts and places a disproportionate burden on historically marginalized populations. The plaintiffs claim that DAPL construction underneath Lake Oahe threatens their fundamental religious rights and rights of freedom from racial and environmental discrimination.
This suit joins an existing legal action by the Cheyenne River and Standing Rock Sioux tribes and claims that President Trump violated Federal Law by denying proper review of environmental and religious rights issues surrounding the controversial pipeline, effectively preventing affected tribal members from submitting expert reports on the environmental and cultural risks associated with the pipeline’s crossing of sacred Sioux Nation lands and beneath Lake Oahe. The lawsuit thus seeks damages from President Trump for illegally blocking the due process rights of tribal members.
Oral arguments for an injunction halting construction and transfer of oil under Lake Oahe are expected to be heard at 11am tomorrow, February, 28, 2017 in front of Judge James E. Boasberg in US District Court.
Washington, DC (February 27, 2017) — RevolutionTruth with lead attorney, Bruce Afran, filed suit today on behalf of a dozen plaintiffs from four tribes of the Oceti Sakowin (Great Sioux Nation) in Federal court. The plaintiffs demand a halt to the Dakota Access Pipeline construction under Lake Oahe and through their sacred treaty lands.
Our suit joins the existing action by the Cheyenne River Sioux and Standing Rock Sioux Tribes. RevolutionTruth and their attorneys claim that President Donald Trump violated federal law by ordering expedited review of the environmental and religious rights issues surrounding the controversial oil pipeline. In effect, he forced the US Army Corps of Engineers to grant the easement for the Dakota Access Pipeline under Lake Oahe.
Sara Jumping Eagle, a member of the Oglala Lakota tribe, is the lead plaintiff among a group of plaintiffs from the Cheyenne River Sioux, Oglala Lakota, Pine Ridge Lakota and Standing Rock Sioux Tribes. These plaintiffs claim that their rights as native citizens of the sovereign Great Sioux Nation have been violated. The plaintiffs follow traditional Dakota, Lakota and/or Nakota ways and claim that their religious rights are interfered with by the environmental threat the pipeline poses to the sacred waters of Lake Oahe and the surrounding treaty land.
Help support our legal campaign to stop the oil from flowing, to stop Trump’s illegal and dangerous power grab, and help us hold Energy Transfer Partners accountable for this dangerous rerouting of this recklessly constructed pipeline.
Photo Credit: © Jerry Millevoi
