A recent wave of support seems to be reviving spirits in
\nStanding Rock, North Dakota, as pipeline protests continue.<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n![\"Photo](\"http:\/\/kalamu.com\/neogriot\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/11\/standing-rock-01.jpg\")
<\/a>Photo by Robyn Beck\/Getty Images.<\/strong><\/span><\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\nSince Aug. 22<\/a>, the Standing Rock Sioux tribe, along with many protestors, have stood their ground protesting the\u00a0Dakota Access Pipeline<\/a>\u00a0\u2014 a 1,172-mile pipeline that will pump oil dangerously close to the tribe’s water supply. Despite the fact that protestors have by and large remained peaceful “protectors of the water,” authorities have\u00a0injured many and arrested hundreds<\/a>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\nBut the world’s been watching, and people across the globe refuse to just sit by and witness the inhumane treatment these protestors are experiencing simply for trying to protect their land.<\/span><\/p>\nSupport is being sent in many forms \u2014 from the tangible to the virtual.\u00a0<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n![\"Photo](\"http:\/\/kalamu.com\/neogriot\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/11\/standing-rock-02.jpg\")
<\/a>Photo by Robyn Beck\/Getty Images.<\/strong><\/span><\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\nIn just the past week, hundreds of thousands of people on Facebook “checked in” to Standing Rock<\/a>\u00a0to help protect protestors from possibly being tracked by law enforcement. A\u00a0crowdfunding campaign<\/a>\u00a0to help with legal and camp costs that had a goal of $5,000 just broke $1 million. Actor\u00a0Mark Ruffalo delivered solar panels<\/a>\u00a0to the protest grounds so they had access to sustainable energy. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\nOne of the more resonant reinforcements to date, however, was a
\npowerful, visual message of solidarity from the M\u0101ori \u2014 the indigenous
\npeople of New Zealand.\u00a0<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n![\"M\u0101ori](\"http:\/\/kalamu.com\/neogriot\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/11\/standing-rock-03.png\")
<\/a>M\u0101ori people performing the haka at Te Whare W\u0101nanga o Awanui\u0101rangi. Photo via Tylee Hudson\/Facebook, used with permission.<\/strong><\/span><\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\nThese M\u0101ori people are doing\u00a0a haka<\/a>\u00a0\u2014 a dance and war cry traditionally performed on the battlefield, but it is often done today as an expression of pride, unity, and strength. According to Tylee Hudson\u00a0who shot the video<\/a>, this group was doing an Utaina haka, which specifically symbolizes working together for the greater good.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\nShe said she hopes the haka will remind her indigenous brethren that they’re not alone in this fight.\u00a0The video has more than 900,000 views. Other similar videos, like one of a\u00a0man performing a haka<\/a>\u00a0on the front lines at Standing Rock, have started popping up too.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\nThe message of unity across tribes has been sent loud and clear.<\/span><\/p>\nAnd thanks to Facebook groups like\u00a0Haka Standing with Standing Rock<\/a>, with its over 27,000 members, that message will continue to reverberate around the world. As their haka declares in its first line, “The challenge has been laid down.” Now it’s time for others to pick up the gauntlet and join the fight.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\nBut the haka is more than just a battle cry and more than just a
\npowerful expression of solidarity. It’s a whole culture of people
\nstanding behind a cause that’s all too familiar to them.<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n![\"Photo](\"http:\/\/kalamu.com\/neogriot\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/11\/standing-rock-04.jpg\")
<\/a>Photo by Hannah Peters\/Getty Images.<\/strong><\/span><\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\nThe M\u0101ori tribes,\u00a0like so many tribes in America\u00a0<\/a>and around the world, have experienced oppression akin to what the Sioux are going through at Standing Rock.<\/span><\/p>\nHudson is a member of the Ngati Awa and T\u016bhoe M\u0101ori tribes, which he says are no strangers to government pushback.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n“Our role as kaitiaki, or guardians of the land, and tino rangatiratanga, the right to self-determination, is forever contested and challenged by the government,” Hudson wrote in an email. M\u0101ori tribes\u00a0often debate settlements<\/a>\u00a0with the government over land and rights, a common tale for most indigenous people.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\nIt’s one reason so many\u00a0different indigenous tribes\u00a0<\/a>have joined the
\nSioux in their fight at Standing Rock. They, more than most, know
\nwhat it’s like to have their rights ignored and ultimately overthrown.\u00a0<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n![\"Photo](\"http:\/\/kalamu.com\/neogriot\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/11\/standing-rock-05.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\nThere is, however, a sliver of hope in all of this unfair treatment.<\/span><\/p>\nEfforts made by the M\u0101ori recently resulted in a settlement with the New Zealand government wherein human rights were granted to the\u00a0Te Urewera rainforest<\/a>. It’s just one example of a government recognizing the importance of the land not only to the people living on it, but to the world as a whole.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\nIt will be much tougher for the Sioux to gain ground against Energy Transfer Partners, the\u00a0private company funding the pipeline<\/a>. But, they’ve got an army of support that is fed up with this injustice and growing stronger by the day. In fact, a\u00a0$2.5 million donation<\/a>\u00a0was reportedly just made by an anonymous donor to release everyone who’s been arrested at Standing Rock.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\nThere are many ways you too can show support without
\nheading to the front lines.<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n![\"Photo](\"http:\/\/kalamu.com\/neogriot\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/11\/standing-rock-06.jpg\")
<\/a>Photo by Jim Watson\/Getty Images.<\/strong><\/span><\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\nYou can sign this\u00a0Change.org petition<\/a>\u00a0to stop the Dakota Access Pipeline. You can donate to the\u00a0Sacred Stone legal defense fund<\/a>, as the legal battle over DAPL is ongoing. You can also\u00a0send specific, much needed supplies<\/a>\u00a0to the campground. Or join the\u00a0Haka Standing with Standing Rock<\/a>\u00a0group to find out more and to enjoy the performative spirit of those uploading their own haka to show support.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\nThe Sioux, like the M\u0101ori, and indigenous people all over the world, are fighting a war they’ve been fighting since\u00a0colonization of their lands<\/a>\u00a0began. It’s the fight to be treated fairly rather than pushed aside as they have been for centuries.<\/span><\/p>\nIt’s time for all of us, indigenous people or not, to stand behind them in any way we can, and shout to the powers that be with all our might \u2014 this is not how you treat people, is not how you treat the land, and this is not how you treat a culture.<\/span><\/p>\nThere are few battles that warrant impassioned war cries more.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\nWatch the full M\u0101ori\u00a0haka here:<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n
![\"Photo](\"http:\/\/kalamu.com\/neogriot\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/11\/upworthy-logo.jpg\"){kind=logo}
<\/a>Photo by Robyn Beck\/Getty Images.<\/strong><\/span><\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Since Aug. 22<\/a>, the Standing Rock Sioux tribe, along with many protestors, have stood their ground protesting the\u00a0Dakota Access Pipeline<\/a>\u00a0\u2014 a 1,172-mile pipeline that will pump oil dangerously close to the tribe’s water supply. Despite the fact that protestors have by and large remained peaceful “protectors of the water,” authorities have\u00a0injured many and arrested hundreds<\/a>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n But the world’s been watching, and people across the globe refuse to just sit by and witness the inhumane treatment these protestors are experiencing simply for trying to protect their land.<\/span><\/p>\n Photo by Robyn Beck\/Getty Images.<\/strong><\/span><\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n In just the past week, hundreds of thousands of people on Facebook “checked in” to Standing Rock<\/a>\u00a0to help protect protestors from possibly being tracked by law enforcement. A\u00a0crowdfunding campaign<\/a>\u00a0to help with legal and camp costs that had a goal of $5,000 just broke $1 million. Actor\u00a0Mark Ruffalo delivered solar panels<\/a>\u00a0to the protest grounds so they had access to sustainable energy. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n M\u0101ori people performing the haka at Te Whare W\u0101nanga o Awanui\u0101rangi. Photo via Tylee Hudson\/Facebook, used with permission.<\/strong><\/span><\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n These M\u0101ori people are doing\u00a0a haka<\/a>\u00a0\u2014 a dance and war cry traditionally performed on the battlefield, but it is often done today as an expression of pride, unity, and strength. According to Tylee Hudson\u00a0who shot the video<\/a>, this group was doing an Utaina haka, which specifically symbolizes working together for the greater good.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n She said she hopes the haka will remind her indigenous brethren that they’re not alone in this fight.\u00a0The video has more than 900,000 views. Other similar videos, like one of a\u00a0man performing a haka<\/a>\u00a0on the front lines at Standing Rock, have started popping up too.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n The message of unity across tribes has been sent loud and clear.<\/span><\/p>\n And thanks to Facebook groups like\u00a0Haka Standing with Standing Rock<\/a>, with its over 27,000 members, that message will continue to reverberate around the world. As their haka declares in its first line, “The challenge has been laid down.” Now it’s time for others to pick up the gauntlet and join the fight.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Photo by Hannah Peters\/Getty Images.<\/strong><\/span><\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n The M\u0101ori tribes,\u00a0like so many tribes in America\u00a0<\/a>and around the world, have experienced oppression akin to what the Sioux are going through at Standing Rock.<\/span><\/p>\n Hudson is a member of the Ngati Awa and T\u016bhoe M\u0101ori tribes, which he says are no strangers to government pushback.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n “Our role as kaitiaki, or guardians of the land, and tino rangatiratanga, the right to self-determination, is forever contested and challenged by the government,” Hudson wrote in an email. M\u0101ori tribes\u00a0often debate settlements<\/a>\u00a0with the government over land and rights, a common tale for most indigenous people.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n There is, however, a sliver of hope in all of this unfair treatment.<\/span><\/p>\n Efforts made by the M\u0101ori recently resulted in a settlement with the New Zealand government wherein human rights were granted to the\u00a0Te Urewera rainforest<\/a>. It’s just one example of a government recognizing the importance of the land not only to the people living on it, but to the world as a whole.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n It will be much tougher for the Sioux to gain ground against Energy Transfer Partners, the\u00a0private company funding the pipeline<\/a>. But, they’ve got an army of support that is fed up with this injustice and growing stronger by the day. In fact, a\u00a0$2.5 million donation<\/a>\u00a0was reportedly just made by an anonymous donor to release everyone who’s been arrested at Standing Rock.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Photo by Jim Watson\/Getty Images.<\/strong><\/span><\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n You can sign this\u00a0Change.org petition<\/a>\u00a0to stop the Dakota Access Pipeline. You can donate to the\u00a0Sacred Stone legal defense fund<\/a>, as the legal battle over DAPL is ongoing. You can also\u00a0send specific, much needed supplies<\/a>\u00a0to the campground. Or join the\u00a0Haka Standing with Standing Rock<\/a>\u00a0group to find out more and to enjoy the performative spirit of those uploading their own haka to show support.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n The Sioux, like the M\u0101ori, and indigenous people all over the world, are fighting a war they’ve been fighting since\u00a0colonization of their lands<\/a>\u00a0began. It’s the fight to be treated fairly rather than pushed aside as they have been for centuries.<\/span><\/p>\n It’s time for all of us, indigenous people or not, to stand behind them in any way we can, and shout to the powers that be with all our might \u2014 this is not how you treat people, is not how you treat the land, and this is not how you treat a culture.<\/span><\/p>\n There are few battles that warrant impassioned war cries more.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Watch the full M\u0101ori\u00a0haka here:<\/span><\/p>\nSupport is being sent in many forms \u2014 from the tangible to the virtual.\u00a0<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n
<\/a>One of the more resonant reinforcements to date, however, was a
\npowerful, visual message of solidarity from the M\u0101ori \u2014 the indigenous
\npeople of New Zealand.\u00a0<\/span><\/h2>\n<\/a>But the haka is more than just a battle cry and more than just a
\npowerful expression of solidarity. It’s a whole culture of people
\nstanding behind a cause that’s all too familiar to them.<\/span><\/h2>\n<\/a>It’s one reason so many\u00a0different indigenous tribes\u00a0<\/a>have joined the
\nSioux in their fight at Standing Rock. They, more than most, know
\nwhat it’s like to have their rights ignored and ultimately overthrown.\u00a0<\/span><\/h2>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\nThere are many ways you too can show support without
\nheading to the front lines.<\/span><\/h2>\n<\/a>