 Hi, John, Now is the perfect time for Biden to act and shut down the Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL). Yesterday, the Senate confirmed Rep. Deb Haaland of Laguna Pueblo to lead the Department of the Interior. This is the first time an Indigenous person will lead the federal government’s relations with Native tribes and public lands, plus she is the first Indigenous Cabinet Secretary. This historic confirmation could not have been possible without the hard work of tribes, native leaders, partners like the NDN Collective, Native Organizers Alliance, Indigenous Environmental Network, and every young person in and out of Sunrise who made phone calls, knocked on doors, and held their elected leaders to a bold climate mandate. This is the opportunity of a lifetime for Secretary Haaland to wield her power to crack down on fossil fuel corporations and evict companies that drill for oil on public lands and in public waters. Deb Haaland knows that this fight extends to private lands too. In 2016, she traveled from New Mexico to the Standing Rock Sioux camps to support their fight against the Dakota Access Pipeline and has been a vocal opponent of the project since. It’s time for Biden to respect the sovereignty of the Standing Rock Soiux and stop the DAPL once and for all. Click here to sign the petition—Biden must shut down the Dakota Access Pipeline. Despite a judge ruling to scrap a key permit for the DAPL, the pipeline continues to operate illegally and has already leaked multiple times. This can’t be allowed to continue. Our generation, especially young native voters, delivered the margin of victory for Biden in November. We did this on a clear mandate to act on climate by addressing environmental racism, righting economic injustice, and fortifying Indigenous sovereignty. Biden can use his executive authority to stop the toxic pipeline, sending a clear message to Indigenous communities that he is willing to do what is necessary to stop the climate crisis at the scale that science—and justice—demand. Join us in demanding that Biden issue an executive order to shut down the destructive Dakota Access Pipeline. It’s time for him to make a choice. Let’s encourage him to make the right one. -Zoë |