At Our Town Reno we salute #heroesofreno who help each other as well as #activistsofreno who support and fight for important causes worth fighting for. We must also always remember Reno is itself on land taken over from the Washoe people. Below is an account of a recent protest at the Believe statue in support of the Unist’ot’en clan which stands in the way of oil and gas pipelines. What makes their ongoing action unique is that the territory they are trying to protect within northern British Columbia in Canada has never been given up by treaty. They say they are fighting to preserve rivers and creeks from contamination for future generations.
"Xótchítl gave a speech about the horrors of the militarized police attacking innocent land protectors, and the importance of protecting every bit of clean water we have left,” participant Tara Tran said of the event. Photo provided to Our Town Reno by Louis Magriel.
An Intensifying Movement
The Unist’ot’en clan, part of the Wet'suwet'en nation in the occupied territories of British Columbia, Canada, have been protesting the planning of several large pipelines which would run through their traditional territories. Conflicts with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) over the Indigenous presence on their own traditional land, which they still retain unceded original title over, have intensified in the past few weeks.
Solidarity events have popped up in several places in North America to protest the intrusion of the corporate energy industry and police into Unist'ot'en territory, and to affirm the power and legitimacy of the Indigenous camp.
In Reno, the solidarity took to the streets as Unist'ot'en supporters marched from the Believe sign to the Reno Arch, took pictures under the Arch, and marched back to the Believe sign, chanting "No Pipelines!" and "What do we do when our children are under attack? Stand up, Fight back!"
“What happens upstream comes downstream,” supporters said. Photo provided to Our Town Reno by Louis Magriel.
A Place for Healing
As much as the gathering was a call to action, it was also a place for healing, and a reminder that in the face of generations of trauma and the evils of today, the Indigenous peoples will not be silenced and won’t stop fighting. In that same spirit, Xótchítl reminded the supporters present that "UNISTOTEN HEALS." Supporters also affirmed plans to do a fundraiser for Unist'ot'en Camp in the coming weeks. More info here: http://unistoten.camp/