WOMEN AND WATER ARE SACRED! Tribal Coalitions walk into Sacred Stone Camp, Standing Rock Sioux Tribe, ND. by Jana Pfeiffer

What a night to remember. As a group of 35 women, representing the 18 Tribal Coalitions against Violence across the U.S., we graciously walked down the dirt road into the main entrance into Stone camp, chanting “Women and Water are Sacred!” We felt proud with every step forward, being united and holding one voice in standing for our Mother water. We entered the first campsite and walked full circle around the community fireplace. We were then greeted by Paula LookingHorse and her husband Arbol LookingHorse (Lakota sacred pipe carrier). We boldly stated our mission to the Sacred Stone Camp community and we each had a chance to speak. I proudly introduced myself and mentioned how grateful I was to be there. “I’m so glad I came to stand in solidarity with the Standing Rock Sioux Nation and represent my Diné people and the Coalition to Stop Violence Against Native Women.”

The greeting ended with an beautiful honor song, on our behalf, and we exchanged handshakes with the Sacred Stone Camp community.  Community members expressed sentiments such as, “Thank you for protecting our Native women and children”. The OVW Leadership Institute Conference was planned months before the protest of #noDAPL. So in essence, the timing of the conference and location was the doing of the Creator. We have so many sacred stories about the relation between women and water, so it was an honor to share our message about ‘holding women sacred and that we stand in solidarity with their right to protect our Mother water’ in a non-violent way.

The Standing Rock Sioux Nation has the right to Tribal consultation, this statement has been uttered throughout our OVW Leadership conference! It’s our right as Tribal Nations to have a Trust relationship with Local, State, and Federal governments. I’m seeing on Facebook, an unprecedented number of Native people joining this spiritual movement at the camp site, so the safety of Native women and children at Stone Camp, is my concern and I know that our presence has made a difference. With so much talk about their next actions, I only wish and pray for an joint agreement and proper consultation.

#StandingRockSiouxNation #noDAPL #CoalitionWomen #Nationhood #StongNativeWomen #VAWA2018 #OctisDVmonth #NCAItaskforce #TLOA #NationalDayofAwareness #MMNWandGirls #NationalInquiry #CSVANW #SacredStoneCamp