Resilience Amid Imperialism: The Standing Rock Sioux Tribe's Enduring Fight Against the Dakota Access Pipeline

By Megan Gauthier |

On October 14, 2024, the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe filed a lawsuit against the United States Army Corps of Engineers, alleging unlawful authorization of the Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL). As a second Trump term approaches, the lawsuit's outcome could signal the fate of environmental impact statements amid a push for energy independence and increased reliance on crude oil. 

The DAPL story begins in June of 2014 when Energy Transfer Partners (ETP), a Texas-based energy development company, proposed a 1,172-mile pipeline from North Dakota’s Bakken region to Pakota, IL. The plan aimed to transport North Dakota crude oil to an Illinois facility, boosting domestic energy independence, creating jobs and strengthening ETP's global oil market position.

The original proposed direction of the pipeline (see image below) crossed the Missouri River above Bismarck, ND—the state’s capital with an 85% white population. As ETP pursued its permits, Bismarck citizens feared drinking-water contamination over potential pipeline bursts and oil spills. As a result, a new route was proposed south of Bismarck near the northern boundary of the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation. The route crosses under Lake Oahe, a sacred cultural resource for Standing Rock. 

"The Dakota Access Pipeline is the Best Way to Move Bakken Crude Oil to Market," Dakota Access Pipeline Facts, 2016-2017, retrieved from https://daplpipelinefacts.com/ 

Not only did this new path disregard drinking water concerns of the Standing Rock community, it threatened to disturb ​sacred burial grounds of the Lakota people situated on ceded land just north of the reservation boundary. Immediately, the Lakota people were castigated in the press for standing in the way of American progress: an echo of the 19th century ​Manifest Destiny rhetoric. The pipeline served as a stark reminder of the daily reality faced by many Native American communities: Indigenous peoples remain vulnerable to the economic pursuits of their colonizing counterparts. 

Alongside the obvious threat that the pipeline brings to water purity—and its role in amplifying climate change—it also threatens Indigenous spirituality, which recognizes the animacy—or inherent communicative aliveness—of all beings in nature. Relationships of respect and reciprocity with all beings are central values in Native American communities, making the pipeline’s disruption of natural entities a profound violation of their spiritual beliefs. 

ETP began construction of the Dakota Access Pipeline in mid-2016. At the same time, powerful resistance began to mount at Standing Rock. This resistance was begun by Native American youth and was later amplified by social media posts with the hashtag #NoDAPL. By late summer 2016, thousands of people from across the United States and the world began appearing at the construction site to camp and pray with the Lakota community. Demonstrators included many public figures such as actors Shailene Woodley and Mark Ruffalo, civil rights activist Jesse Jackson, and recent presidential candidate Jill Stein. The resistance earned the title of “the largest Indigenous demonstration in decades” as national attention moved into international attention.

With this attention came daunting militarization from local law enforcement who used mace, pepper spray, batons, attack dogs, sound cannons, strip searches and many other violent tactics against the peaceful protestors. Nevertheless, a momentary victory was achieved on December 5, 2016 when President Obama put a temporary halt on DAPL pending a proper environmental impact assessment. This halt was lifted by President Trump 50 days later. Finally, on February 23, 2017, more than 200 law enforcement officers raided the remaining camps, arrested over 50 people, and completed a final eviction.

This did not end public support for the Standing Rock Sioux tribe, however. Many groups continued the #NoDAPL fight with demonstrations in major cities, refusing to let this movement die. The fight continues today.  

On Indigenous Peoples’ Day (October 14, 2024), the Sioux Tribe filed another lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia against the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, challenging the agency responsible for overseeing the segment of DAPL beneath Lake Oahe. The lawsuit claims insufficient environmental review by the Army Corps after a 2024 engineering report revealed 1.4 million gallons of bentonite clay-based drilling mud (a known water pollutant) was unaccounted for in construction records, indicating probable contamination of Lake Oahe (or the surrounding soil). 

Additionally, the lawsuit outlines how DAPL is in violation of the 1868 Fort Laramie Treaty, which identifies Sioux territory lands and protections. Article II of the Treaty specifically guarantees “the absolute and undisturbed use and occupation of the Indians herein named.” The image below illustrates the direct infringement of the Treaty by the pipeline: 

Bill McKibben, "A Pipeline Fight and America's Dark Past," The New Yorker, September 6, 2016; Ryan W. Miller, "How the Dakota Access Pipeline Battle Unfolded," USA Today, December 2, 2016, retrieved from https://americanindian.si.edu/nk360/plains-treaties/dapl 

Although the plaintiff has presented supported claims, the case is proving to be a challenging battle. The State of North Dakota has requested to intervene as a defendant in the lawsuit, citing “significant environmental and economic interests in the litigation,” opposing the Tribe’s deconstruction demands.  

If the decision favors the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe, it could set a precedent for environmental reviews and emergency spill response plans for future pipeline projects. Heading into a second Trump term, these regulations could be crucial in accompanying the President-elect’s “Drill Baby Drill” rhetoric, priming the nation for energy independence through crude oil reliance. 

Success in this lawsuit would remind Americans that 19th-century treaties between tribal governments and the U.S. federal government remain living, binding documents. Indigenous communities must be able to exercise the rights granted in these previously negotiated treaties; otherwise, the agreements risk becoming meaningless and the historical injustices they were meant to address will persist. 

 Positionality Statement: 

My perspectives are that from a white, American woman with secure economic standing and no religious affiliations. I understand that my privileges impact the nature of my journalistic work, and I am practicing moving away from Western-centric notions of forming knowledge. I understand that my research would be impossible without the knowledge and guidance of Indigenous peoples, and I will acknowledge them so my research does not fail to reach who it’s aimed to represent. Finally, I believe ecological justice must include Indigenous voices for a whole, decolonized approach, and that Indigenous-specific additions to environmental justice theory originate in the cultural traditions and historical experiences of Native American communities. Sustainability is a systems-level approach to environmental solutions that should include several diverse perspectives to provide a full, comprehensive human and non-human picture of ecological health.