PIPELINE PROTESTS

On Tuesday, July 20, organizations gathered press and politicians at the Headwaters of the Mississippi River in Itasca State Park to demonstrate the impacts of Line 3 to states downstream on the Mississippi River, and speak about treaty rights.

In an afternoon rally of remembering treaties between tribes and the United States government, defending the sacred and honoring the legacy of Indigenous women leaders, a group of about 200 stood for water and against the Enbridge Line 3 replacement project.

The sheriff's office and the 1855 Treaty Authority also commented on the situation developing Monday morning, June 28 in the Hinds Lake area.

Hundreds of water protectors, Indigenous leaders and activists gathered on County Road 9 in Clearwater County, about 20 miles southwest of Bemidji, to protest construction of the Enbridge Line 3 oil pipeline on June 7, 2021. After marching for nearly 2 miles from their staging area to the Mississippi River, indigenous leaders spoke to the crowd and demanded political leaders hear their voices over environmental, and other, concerns about continued construction of Enbridge's pipeline.

Several of the protesters locked themselves together, wearing “sleeping dragon” devices, attaching themselves to one another -- many lying on the ground in sleeping bags for warmth, while others were also locked to the fences outside of the entrances. The Minnesota State Patrol used saws to cut through the devices, which appeared to be made with reinforced metal bars.

More than two dozen arrests were made as a result of a peaceful Line 3 protest blockading an Enbridge construction site with a prayer lodge on Thursday. According to arrest records, 92% of the protestors arrested live at addresses outside of northern Minnesota.

Construction workers on scene told law enforcement four people from the group of demonstrators climbed into the pipe with cold weather gear and sleeping bags.

Many of the protestors traveled from the northeast “to act in solidarity with Anishinaabe peoples here in Minnesota,” according to a news release.

Protesters have entered the trench area, causing potential to themselves, workers and possible rescue personnel, a news release stated Tuesday, Feb. 2.