Reflections on Standing Rock @susancerulean

LUCY BURDETTE: Today I'm honored to introduce my sister, Susan Cerulean, who is a nature writer and a fierce advocate for the environment. When we heard that she was going to visit Standing Rock Reservation to support the Sioux protest of the Dakota Access pipeline, we all agreed we'd like to hear about her experience. I asked some questions (in bold) and she'll be happy to answer questions and comments from you as well. 

SUSAN CERULEAN: On the snowy, stinging cold prairies of North Dakota, encampments at Standing Rock have evolved into the longest running protest in modern history.  The main camp—Oceti Sakowin--sits on Federal lands that legally belong to the Standing Rock Sioux under the terms of an 1851 treaty.  On that site, thousands of Native Americans and others are seeking to halt completion of the 1172-mile Dakota Access pipeline, which is being constructed to transport fracked oil from the Bakkan shale oil fields of North Dakota, to southern Illinois.  The concern about an oil spill upriver from the tribe’s water source has resonated with groups across the country.  Militarized law enforcement has responded to the nonviolent prayer marches and actions with road blockades, illegal eviction notices, arrests, tear gas, rubber bullets, attack dogs and water cannons.  This is why the Sioux people invited us to come stand with them.

What made you decide to go to Standing Rock, and what did you hope to accomplish or offer?

In the first days after the devastating Nov. 8 election, like so many others, I searched for a larger context of hope, and for personal direction.  I have worked my entire life as a wildlife biologist, an environmental advocate and a writer, and it’s clear that we have entered a time when we can no longer count on politicians or the government to protect our life-giving planet Earth.  We must find a way to wake up ourselves--and every other human being--to the utter gravity of our situation.

I saw a Facebook post from Tallahassee-born Caitlin McMullin, who had just spent 7 days at Standing Rock with her 3-month old baby boy, Clay.  Should I go, would it be helpful? I asked Caitlin.  ABSOLUTELY! she messaged in return.

So, hoping to support Native Americans, and on behalf of the river, and very much hoping to understand the disconnect between most people and our climate crisis, I traveled to North Dakota for a week with my niece, Erin Canter.  We went because what is happening on the banks of the Missouri River and all along the pipeline path is a one-sided war.  We went to witness, to learn, and to work, however we might be needed.  With us we brought $3000 in cash contributions from generous friends, and two enormous boxes of wool clothing to give to people there.

What expectations did you have about the camp and the protesters, and how were these either met or changed? What surprised you most?

I didn’t expect there to be so many young, white people at the camp, eager to contribute and to risk doing direct action on the front lines.  A good thing, because it meant support and media attention; and a challenging thing for the Native Americans, because it required a steep training curve for the influx of newcomers.  There were orientation meetings every day led by Natives, reminding us that we were there to pray, and in no way to bring violence to the struggle.  The camp swelled to about 10,000 occupants during the first week of December when we arrived, and although people were asked to provide for themselves, many were not prepared for the cold, and the primitive conditions.  We were asked to be mindful of our status as “allies,” that this was a Native struggle, and that their thinking needed to always be central.  As white people, many of us don’t realize how front and center we put ourselves (which perpetuates colonization).

Don’t we need that pipeline as a step toward energy independence?

We’ve got to look at a much bigger picture.  If we’re going to have any hope of slowing climate change, remaining fossil coal and oil deposits– and carbon dioxide they would generate– need to stay in the ground.  In precisely the way we hope Brazil guards the Amazon rainforest, that massive sponge for carbon dioxide absorption, we need to slow our mining and fracking, and invest in true energy independence—meaning cutting back our consumption of fossil fuels, and investing heavily in renewable sources, such as solar and wind.

The day that you left North Dakota, the permit for the pipeline was denied. That's a great step. Now we can all breathe a sigh of relief, right?

Ever so briefly.  I take my cue from the Standing Rock peoples, who are cheered, but know this is just a respite. Every single Cabinet pick made by the Trump administration this week is ready to dismantle all the protections we have in place for clean air and water, wildlife and public lands.  I’d say we are looking at some rough times ahead.

How is this issue related to other environmental issues that you've gotten involved in? What can ordinary people do to help?

All of my life I’ve worked on behalf of the natural world, for several nonprofits, for the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, on the Board of the Nature Conservancy, and now as a board member and volunteer for St. Vincent National Wildlife Refuge.  I primarily identify as a writer, though, and all of my books and talks are interpretive: where do we live, and with whom do we share our space?  Why is it so hard to protect non-human species and natural landscapes, when we love them so much?  I love that I get to be a voice for birds, islands, the Earth.  It’s such a privilege.  People should sign up for my blog, and read my books.  I’ve got plenty of answers!

This election, coupled with raging climate change, offers us a wake up call we ignore at our peril.  Every single one of us needs to step our game, our activism.

And me being me, I have to ask, where did you sleep and what did you eat? What was it like physically in the camp?

As you know, we came prepared to camp, and therefore had no reservations to stay at the closest and only hotel, the Standing Rock Prairie Knights Casino (7 miles south of the camp). 

But our gear was no match for the subfreezing temperatures, so we crashed with friends who did have heated rooms up the road.  During the daytime we subsisted on peanut butter and energy bars, but at night I splurged on the buffet at the Casino.  It wasn’t delicious, but it was hot food!

And ps, for anyone in Key West on December 22, Susan will be speaking at the Key West library at 4 pm.