Aug 23, 2017 - Energy Transfer Partners Files Lawsuit Against Environmental Groups that Supported NoDAPL Efforts

August 22, 2017 – Energy Transfer Partners [ETP], the company behind the Dakota Access Pipeline, has filed a lawsuit against environmental organizations who supported the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe and the NoDAPL efforts.

In the lawsuit they claim that non-profit environmental organizations, “cynically planted radical, violent eco-terrorists on the ground amongst the protesters, and directly funded their operations and publicly urged their supporters to do the same.”

It further states that these organizations are engaged in campaigns to 1). manufacture a media spectacle based on phony but emotionally charged hot-button issues, manufacture conflict, incite physical violence, and 2). to “relentlessly publicize these sensational lies to generate funding.”

Energy Transfer Partners paints itself as a “victim” in its filing and acknowledges that divestment campaigns have impacted their bottomline.

They claim, “Negative publicity generated by the demonstrations caused ETP to lose “many hundreds of millions of dollars” and damaged its ability to raise money from capital markets.”

In response Linda Black Elk states, “The racist overtones of this lawsuit are nauseating and have potentially catastrophic impacts to the future of Native American tribal sovereignty.

Energy Transfer Partners has sued Green Peace, Bank Track, and Earth First as defendants…and has named Bold Alliance, 350.org, Sierra Club, Earthjustice, Red Warrior Camp and others as conspirators. The allegation is that these groups participated in a scheme to solicit fraudulent donations under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO).

ETP claims their damages include financial harm from divestment, increased costs, and harm to reputation. Their suit makes these amazing environmental organizations look like slick, white, profiteers, who have worked us poor, ignorant, Indians into a frenzy over “groundless claims” concerning harm to the environment and sacred sites. Consequently, they allege that the water protector movement at Cannonball was nothing more than a green group fundraising scheme, and not a sincere, tribal environmental movement. THEY ARE SAYING THAT WE, AS THIS NATION’S ORIGINAL PEOPLE, DON’T HAVE THE INTELLIGENCE OR SELF DETERMINATION TO CARE ABOUT OUR LANDS, WATER, PLANTS, WILDLIFE, OR SACRED SITES.

They call Red Fawn an eco-terrorist. They call the Akicita an eco-terrorist group. They claim that Earthjustice manipulated the Standing Rock Nation into bringing the lawsuit in order to raise money for Earthjustice. They claim that the Indians never cared about the Dakota Access Pipeline until Earthjustice and the green groups got involved. They claim that the risks and data supplied by the Tribe were false. They claim that the respected and knowledgeable tribal elder, Tim Mentz, lied about sacred sites.

This is all part of a larger strategy on behalf of Energy Transfer to completely discredit Native peoples in general and delegitimize water protectors specifically. It could also intimidate these big green groups from partnering with grass roots people in environmental campaigns.

NEVER FORGET!! Energy Transfer Partners, Enbridge, and TransCanada WANT US TO BE SILENCED! They need world where advocacy, dissent, and disagreement over important scientific, environmental, and cultural principles and challenges to big oil and the government become grounds for huge civil suits…they hate being challenged because we have hurt their pocketbooks. They want nothing more than to continue the systematic rape of our mother earth, unimpeded. They are psychotic, and they must be stopped!“

Jackie Fielder further states, “This is an attack on freedom of speech to scare organizations and individuals into compliance. We will not back down, we will continue to divest from Wall Street and invest locally.”

According to Philly.com “Energy Transfer is seeking unspecified money damages, which would be tripled under U.S. racketeering laws; a court order barring the groups from further protests; and an order for the groups to return money to donors.”

Rachel Heaton states, “For so long these fossil fuel companies have been able to hide their agendas and the negative impacts they have truly caused in our communities, to our lives and Mother Earth. They can no longer without question sell their propaganda and think that what they are doing will go unnoticed. This lawsuit is a scare tactic to silence these organizations from standing up to these corporations.”

The lawsuit targets Greenpeace, Earth First, BankTrack and John and Jane Does.

It was filed by Kasowitz, Benson, and Torres LLP. Marc Kasowitz is the personal attorney of Donald Trump.

Read the full lawsuit here ETP-lawsuit

by Wakíƞyaƞ Waánataƞ (Matt Remle- Lakota)