Stand With Standing Rock

Stand With Standing Rock: Divest all funds from banks that support the North Dakota DAPL Pipeline 

In my blogs, I have discussed a lot about how water is important to Native Americans. But I have yet to discuss how YOU can help divest the pipeline from afar. Many of us see through social media and other outlets of the injustices happening in North Dakota. Re-sharing information through social media can only do so little. By divesting in banks that are funding the pipeline, you are saying you will not stand idly by and watch Native Americans get seriously injured by non-lethal weapons, you want water for your children, and you stand against the oppression of Native Americans. I’ve listed the companies that are in charge of the pipeline and the banks that are also invested. Say you stand with Standing Rock by closing your bank account and joining a credit union. Challenge your friends and let’s make this a thing!
#ExitBankChallenge: Close your bank account (if you have an account with any of the banks below), and take a picture with a sign that reads #ExitBankChallenge in front of your former bank. Tag 3 friends and let’s make this a thing!

The Companies:

Dakota Access, LLC: Responsible for developing the pipeline. ($2.5 billion project-level loans from 17 banks)

Energy Transfer Partners, L.P. (ETP): Dakota Access, LLC and Sunoco Logistics Paterns are subsidiaries of Energy Transfer Partners. ($3.75 billion revolving credit from 26 banks)

Energy Transfer Equity (ETE): Is a master limited partnership that owns the general partner and 100% of the incentive distribution rights of ETP and SXL. ETE owns and operates about 71,000 miles of natural gas and crude oil pipelines. ($1.5 billion revolving credit from 26 banks)

Sunoco Logistics Partners (SXL): Is a subsidiary of ETP that will be the future operator of the pipeline. SXL has spilled crude more often than any of its competitors with more than 200 leaks since 2010, according to a Reuters analysis. ($2.5 billion revolving credit from 24 banks)

The Banks:

•          Bank of Nova Scotia: $100 million (Sunoco Logistics)
•         Citizens Bank: $72.5 million (Sunoco Logistics)
• ·         Comerica Bank: $72.5 million (Sunoco Logistics)
• ·         US Bank: $275 million (Sunoco Logistics) (Energy Transfer Partners)
• ·         PNC Bank: $270 million (Sunoco Logistics)  (Energy Transfer Partners) (Energy Transfer Equity)
• ·         Barclays: $370.5 million (Sunoco Logistics)  (Energy Transfer Partners) (Energy Transfer Equity)
• ·         JP Morgan Chase: $312.5 million (Sunoco Logistics)  (Energy Transfer Partners) (Energy Transfer Equity)
• ·         Bank of America: $350.5 million (Sunoco Logistics)  (Energy Transfer Partners) (Energy Transfer Equity)
• ·         Deutsche Bank: $275.5 million (Sunoco Logistics)  (Energy Transfer Partners) (Energy Transfer Equity)
• ·         Compass Bank: $340.5 million (Sunoco Logistics)  (Energy Transfer Partners) (Energy Transfer Equity)
• ·         Credit Suisse: $340.5 million (Sunoco Logistics)  (Energy Transfer Partners) (Energy Transfer Equity)
• ·         DNB Capital/ASA: $340.5 million (Sunoco Logistics)  (Energy Transfer Partners) (Energy Transfer Equity)
• ·         Sumitomo Mitsui Bank: $265.5 million (Sunoco Logistics)  (Energy Transfer Partners) (Energy Transfer Equity)
• ·         Royal Bank of Canada: $340.5 million (Sunoco Logistics)  (Energy Transfer Partners) (Energy Transfer Equity)
• ·         UBS: $336.4 million (Sunoco Logistics)  (Energy Transfer Partners) (Energy Transfer Equity)
• ·         Goldman Sachs: $243.9 million (Sunoco Logistics)  (Energy Transfer Partners) (Energy Transfer Equity)
• ·         Morgan Stanley: $225.1 million (Sunoco Logistics)  (Energy Transfer Partners) (Energy Transfer Equity)
• ·         Community Trust: $30 million  (Energy Transfer Partners)
• ·         HSBC Bank: $189 million  (Energy Transfer Partners) (Energy Transfer Equity)
• ·         Wells Fargo: $467 million (Sunoco Logistics)  (Energy Transfer Partners) (Energy Transfer Equity) (Dakota Access)
• ·         BNP Paribas: $444.5 million (Sunoco Logistics)  (Energy Transfer Partners) (Energy Transfer Equity) (Dakota Access)
• ·         SunTrust: $435 million (Sunoco Logistics)  (Energy Transfer Partners) (Energy Transfer Equity) (Dakota Access)
• ·         Royal Bank of Scotland: $250.5 million  (Energy Transfer Partners) (Energy Transfer Equity)
• ·         Bank of Tokyo Mitsubishi UFJ: $548 million (Sunoco Logistics)  (Energy Transfer Partners) (Energy Transfer Equity) (Dakota Access)
• ·         Mizuho Bank: $589.5 million (Sunoco Logistics)  (Energy Transfer Partners) (Energy Transfer Equity) (Dakota Access)
• ·         Citibank: $521.8 million (Sunoco Logistics)  (Energy Transfer Partners) (Energy Transfer Equity) (Dakota Access)
• ·         TD Securities: $365 million (Sunoco Logistics) (Dakota Access)
• ·         ABN Amro Capital: $45 million (Energy Transfer Equity)
• ·         Credit Agricole: $344.5 million  (Energy Transfer Partners) (Energy Transfer Equity) (Dakota Access)
• ·         Intesa Sanpaolo: $339 million (Energy Transfer Partners) (Energy Transfer Equity) (Dakota Access)
• ·         ING Bank: $248.3 milllion  (Energy Transfer Partners) (Energy Transfer Equity) (Dakota Access)
• ·         Natixis: $180 million (Energy Transfer Equity) (Dakota Access)
• ·         BayernLB: $120 million (Dakota Access)
• ·         BBVA Securities: $120 million (Dakota Access)
• ·         DNB First Bank: $120 million (Dakota Access)
• ·         ICBC London: $120 million (Dakota Access)
• ·         SMBC Nikko Securities: $120 million (Dakota Access)
• ·         Societe Generale: $120 million (Dakota Access)

We do not inherit the earth from our ancestors,
 we borrow it from our children.. 

Na’atló’ / Navajo String Game

Growing up with my siblings, winter was always our favorite time of the year. We could go sledding, we had winter break and the break would bring our cousins back from the city, and the best part was playing string games after the first snow.

The origin stories behind the Navajo string game are long and our maternal grandmother would only tell them in increments. Na’atló’ originated with Na’ashj’e’ii Asdzáá, Grandmother Spider, in the creation stories of the Navajo. Grandmother Spider is a magical character who performs both good and bad deeds and plays an important role in Navajo society.

It is imperative that the string games are only played after the first frost and first snow. This is the time when summer animals hibernate and spiders go back into their holes for the winter. We pay respect to Grandmother Spider, as she is a creature of intellect and possess great knowledge. This game was learned from her as each symbol has a story and meaning behind it. There are 48 symbols or patterns and each is unique as a person should learn both the traditional name and story due to their significance in the environment within our homeland. 

Growing up, knowing as many difficult patterns as you could would heighten your rep at school. It makes me laugh now because we were so silly as kids. I still remember I wasn't the best at string games and my brother and his friends got a lot of attention. I would get mad and hide his strings because he wouldn't teach me. Writing about the string games brought back many childhood memories with my siblings and with my childhood friends. 

I’ve attached a link that brings you to the main page of a Navajo website. I was ecstatic to see that all the patterns were shown in a video if you click on different ones. My go-to's were the Open Gate and the Big Star, because they are the first ones I learned and the easiest (in my opinion). I also found my yazh (uncle) online performing the string game—he is pictured above. He is well respected in our community and I was thrilled to see him when I did a simple google image search. 

http://www.gomyson.com/mainstring.htm

Keeping Tradition Alive

In Navajo culture, winter brings many things—the cold, a new year, yas (snow) and certain winter stories are told. It is probably my most favorite time of the year because now coyote stories can be told, string games can be played, and the Navajo Shoe game is also played. (I will discuss the string game next week.) Besides all the fun stuff, one of my earliest memories was bathing in the snow. 

For as long as I can remember my parents would wake us (my siblings and I) up super early after the first snowfall. It is part of tradition to wash up and bless yourself with the arrival of the first snow. Bushy and straight out of bed, we’d make our way to the backdoor and strip to just our trunks and sports bra or just trunks for the boys—we line up. The snow drifted in such a unique way that a mound would form by the back door. From there we’d jump in and quickly wash ourselves from head to toe and come running back in to my mom holding a towel for each of us. My older, super naughty cousin always cried and threw a fit, for such a tough mean kid, I loved seeing this. A couple years my dad had to toss him in the snow for his own good. Shivering and now fully awake, we’d wipe off the excess snow and proceed to get ready. The meaning differs by region on the reservation, but the we all do it because it is part of our tradition. A way to strengthen ourselves—mind, body, spirit, to thicken our skin for trials, and as my dad would say in Navajo as we ‘bathed’, “Shake that laziness off!” It’s all part of tradition and we still do it today. Bathing in the snow also means to honor the power of mother earth, respect and show appreciation for the blessings the new year and season brings, and to prepare for challenges that may lie ahead. Overall, it’s to show our appreciation of life because of what the snow is—water, and water is life. 

Below I have linked a very active person on social media that tells Navajo stories and does the snow bath with her daughters.