On the Red Road, Lummi Totem Pole to Shell River Stop Line 3

Native activists, tribal leaders hold event to call on Biden to stop Line 3 pipeline

By Red Road to DC
Censored News

Event is part of cross-country trip to Washington, DC to highlight sacred sites at risk

What: As part of the Red Road to DC, a cross-country tour highlighting Indigenous sacred sites at risk, Native American grassroots organizers will hold an event in Minnesota. The group will join area tribes, local organizers, and allies to bring attention to the threats posed by the Line 3 pipeline. Tour organizers will bring a totem pole honoring sacred Indigenous sites as a gift to President Biden to urge his immediate protection of sacred sites. They will make stops across the country at places and resources that are at risk due to development and infrastructure projects.

When: Sunday, July 25, 4:00 – 8:00 PM (CST)

4:00 – 5:00 PM arrival and welcome to Shell Camp, paddling on Shell River

5:00 – 6:00 PM totem pole blessing ceremony and speakers at Horse Camp (5-minute walk or 2-minute drive from Shell Camp)

6:00 – 8:00 PM feast and solidarity celebration at Shell Camp

Public events including canoeing, ceremonies, and feast from 4:00 – 8:00 PM, press welcome to attend entire event but press availability will be held from 5:00 – 6:00 PM

Where: Shell City Campground [link]

Off 390th Street, Menahga, MN


As part of the Red Road to DC tour, the House of Tears Carvers of Lummi Nation will bring their totem pole commemorating the importance of protecting sacred sites for a community and media event.

Who: As part of the Red Road to DC tour, the House of Tears Carvers of Lummi Nation will bring their totem pole commemorating the importance of protecting sacred sites for a community and media event. They will be joined by representatives from Honor the Earth, including Winona LaDuke, and Red Lake Treaty Camp (Red Lake Band of Chippewa), the Rise Coalition, and other water protectors working to stop the Line 3 tar sands pipeline that threatens treaty rights, the global climate, and more than 20 rivers in Anishinaabe treaty territory. The tour is sponsored by Native Organizers Alliance, Se'Si'Le, The Natural History Museum, National Congress of American Indians, and IllumiNative.

"We will bring the prayers and wishes of all who visit the totem to Washington, DC," said Jewell Praying Wolf James (Lummi), master carver at House of Tears Carvers. "Each stop on our journey will be a time for prayer and reflection, as people across Indian Country share their hopes for a future where our most sacred places, the places we worship and gather foods and medicine, are protected."

"We are grateful to our Indigenous brothers and sisters for coming to our lands to highlight this sacred place," said Winona LaDuke, Executive Director of Honor the Earth. "Line 3 cuts through Anishinaabe treaty land, where our wild rice grows and where we hold rights to fish, gather, and hunt. We must stand together to defend our lands and waters and protect them from being poisoned."

Visuals: totem pole blessing; traditional drummers; water ceremony; Horse Nations ceremony; Standing Rock runners

More info: For additional information, photos, and a full list of tour stops, visit redroadtodc.org. Learn more about the work of water protectors resisting Line 3 at https://www.stopline3.org/issues.

Contact:
Brad Angerman, Pyramid Communications
bangerman [at] pyramidcommunications.com

About Honor the Earth

Our mission is to create awareness and support for Native environmental issues and to develop needed financial and political resources for the survival of sustainable Native communities. Honor the Earth develops these resources by using music, the arts, the media, and Indigenous wisdom to ask people to recognize our joint dependency on the Earth and be a voice for those not heard. To learn more, visit https://www.honorearth.org.