Two weeks ago, the U.S. Forest Service issued a permit to the mining corporation Pete Lien & Sons to conduct exploratory graphite drilling near Pe'Sla—a supremely sacred meadow in the Black Hills, the sovereign homeland of the Oceti Sakowin (Great Sioux Nation).
When the drilling was announced, Indigenous land defenders mobilized rapidly, placing their lives on the line to defend Pe'Sla. As these warriors physically occupied the drilling sites, a coalition of groups, including the NDN Collective, successfully filed for a restraining order to halt the operation. While the drilling was paused, nine tribes filed a lawsuit against the Forest Service for this gross violation of Indigenous sovereignty.
Faced with this militant resistance and legal action, the PL&S mining company was forced to abandon their plans to drill in the Black Hills.
The Oceti Sakowin have resisted the invasion and destruction of the Black Hills for centuries.
When settlers first invaded the hills in search of gold, it was Tȟatȟáŋka Íyotake (Sitting Bull) who commanded the Sioux to victory over the U.S. Cavalry. It was Tȟašúŋke Witkó (Crazy Horse) who led the charge. It was Buffalo Calf Road Woman who struck the blow that killed George Armstrong Custer, the commander of the 700 defeated cavalrymen.
While Pe'Sla is a supremely sacred site, the entire land is sacred because it gives us life. Settler entities like the U.S. and Canada are illegitimate occupiers, and their claims to this continent are empty, regardless of "legal" title. All settlers are unwanted invaders, from Turtle Island to Palestine.
In the spirit of Palestinian martyr Abu Ubaydah: "We salute our steadfast people on their land, rejecting displacement and expulsion, standing as a thorn in the throats of the occupation."
DEFEND THE BLACK HILLS!