Las Vegas Paiutes demonstrate in solidarity with tribe fighting North Dakota pipeline

Protesters marched on the Strip and chanted slogans Friday evening in solidarity with a North Dakota tribe that is fighting construction of a pipeline it says will endanger its water supply.

A crowd of about 100 people gathered Friday afternoon in front of the Bellagio’s fountains for the peaceful protest organized by the Las Vegas Paiute Tribe to show support for the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe, which has been demonstrating against the pipeline since April.

Las Vegas Paiute members carried signs underscoring their support of the Standing Rock tribe, sacred lands and clean water.

The 1,172-mile Dakota Access pipeline, or DAPL, is under construction and slated to run through North and South Dakota, Iowa and Illinois. The $3.8 billion pipeline, which has the capacity to carry a half-million barrels of oil, was approved by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to cross under the Missouri River a mile north of the reservation.

The river is the source of water for the Standing Rock reservation’s 8,000 residents, and tribal leaders say any leak could cause irreparable harm, according to a Washington Post story.

On Friday, protesters walked along the Strip, chanting “Water is Life!,” “We Stand with Standing Rock,” “Water Not Oil, Don’t Pollute the Soil” and “Where Oil Flows Nothing Grows.”

Some protesters held clipboards with petitions against the pipeline, while others danced in tribal clothing. A few members sang tribal songs, burned sage and played native drums.

Drivers on the Strip honked their horns in solidarity, and passers-by took photos of the signs. Several asked for more information and how they could help the cause.

“We need to band together and take a stand,” said William Anderson, a member of the Moapa Band of Paiutes. “It’s our basic right to drink clean water,” he said. “We are defending everybody. All tribes and indigenous people.”

In a phone interview, Las Vegas Paiute Tribal Chairman Benny Tso said the tribe is in full support of the Standing Rock Sioux. “To show representation and support, we are looking to travel to North Dakota and hand-deliver our tribal flag,” he said.

“The water and soil is at jeopardy … This is a human rights issue,” Lamont A. Compton, a member of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe, said during Friday’s protest.

Contact Raven Jackson at rjackson@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0283. Follow @ravenmjackson on Twitter.