Sioux Tribe Case Study

Currently, in North Dakota, there is a major protesting taking over. Members of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe are taking a stand and protesting against the Energy Transfer Company. The protests derive from an oil pipeline that is in the process of being built. According to their official company website, the Energy Transfer Company are developing the pipeline to provide transportation of crude oil from points in the Bakken/Three Forks production areas in North Dakota all the way to Patoka, Illinois. The company claims that this will be more environmentally friendly and it will lower costs. This upset the tribe because the bulldozers that are being used to build the pipeline are ruining the tribes sacred burial grounds, prayer sites, and some culturally significant artifacts, as well

The officers that are working the protest have their hands full trying to keep these obligations. They are making arrests of protesters for reasons including criminal trespassing, criminal mischief, spray-painting on construction equipment, and destruction of property. Some of the major controversy surrounding the protests are if the officers are doing their job justifiably. One major discussion is the use of K-9 attack dogs in the field during protests. Many of the protesters went to the hospital to be treated for bite marks that they sustained from the dogs. Although the officers may be justified in using pepper spray and other non-lethal alternatives, many question whether the dogs should be used. There are lots of controversies surrounding this build but another big one focuses on the company. People have wondered if the company could just relocate the locations in which the pipeline runs. For example, having the pipeline run on the outskirts of the tribal land compared to through it. If that was possible and the company went through with the idea, they could save a lot of violence and