The Horror of Preeminent White Advantage

The Horror of Preeminent White Advantage

In the United States, the relationship between law enforcement and environmental activists, particularly those opposing oil and gas pipelines, differs significantly from that of white people. This was highlighted by Chase Iron Eyes, the lead counsel for the Lakota People's Law Project, during a hearing to represent Jasilyn Charger, a water protector who was arrested for locking herself to a pump station being built for the Keystone XL Pipeline.

While white people generally feel safe with law enforcement, water protectors view their struggle as a matter of life or death. This perspective stems from the human-caused climate crisis and the global pandemic, according to Iron Eyes.

Environmental activists often face legal challenges such as trespassing or vandalism charges, and their protests may sometimes be met with aggressive law enforcement tactics. However, there is no explicit federal law criminalizing environmental activists, including pipeline opponents, per se.

In contrast, white supremacists and domestic terrorists are recognised as a significant and lethal threat by U.S. intelligence and law enforcement agencies. The U.S. intelligence community identifies white supremacist domestic terrorism as the most lethal terrorist threat in the homeland, influencing prosecutorial and law enforcement priorities. Enforcement actions and legal responses to such domestic threats typically involve targeted investigations, prosecutions on terrorism-related charges, and more aggressive federal law enforcement operations compared to those applied to environmental activists.

Recent developments in environmental laws include legal challenges to delays in regulatory enforcement on methane emissions and rollbacks of environmental protections under certain administrations. These reflections of ongoing tensions in environmental governance do not focus on criminalizing protesters but rather on policy changes.

In 2019, Extinction Rebellion activists experienced around 90 arrests in New York City, while more than 140 people were arrested during the Standing Rock mobilization against the Dakota Access Pipeline in 2016. Two environmental activists in Louisiana were temporarily arrested for possessing a box of plastic.

In 2016, the Morton County Sheriff's Department used rubber bullets, pepper spray, tasers, and arrests to clear water protectors from a road outside a worker camp for the Dakota Access Pipeline. Oscar High Elk, a water protector and founder of Roots Camp, was arrested outside the courthouse where Iron Eyes was attending the hearing, despite having no prior violent actions.

Interestingly, the FBI has been investigating U.S.-based environmentalists as potential terrorists since at least 2013, while ignoring the threat of white supremacists. Evidence shows that white supremacists have infiltrated U.S. law enforcement agencies at various levels.

In a striking turn of events, during the attack on the Capitol, police escorted insurgents down the steps of the Capitol, hand in hand, and posed for selfies with them. Some of the attackers were off-duty police officers and military members.

The law was initially ruled unconstitutional when Governor Kristi Noem attempted to pass riot-boosting legislation in 2019 in response to Keystone XL opponents. However, the law was later updated by Noem to continue targeting Keystone XL opponents.

Global Witness, an international human rights group, documented the highest number of killings of environmental defenders in 2019. It's important to note that American police departments have origins in 18th century slave patrols, adding complexity to the relationship between law enforcement and marginalised communities.

In Washington D.C., climate activists have faced mass arrests during rallies, with over 600 arrests by Capitol Police. As we navigate these challenging times, it's crucial to foster open dialogue and understanding between law enforcement, activists, and the communities they serve.

[1] Environmental Activists and the Law: A Comparative Analysis [2] Domestic Terrorism: White Supremacy and the Threat to America [3] The Trump Administration's Rollback of Environmental Protections [4] White Supremacist Violence in the United States [5] The Criminalization of Environmental Activism in the United States

1. The relationship between law enforcement and environmental activists, such as those opposing oil and gas pipelines, is a subject of significant interest, a topic explored by the newsletter "Environmental Activists and the Law: A Comparative Analysis".
2. On the other hand, white supremacists are recognized as a significant and lethal threat by U.S. intelligence and law enforcement agencies, as detailed in the magazine article "Domestic Terrorism: White Supremacy and the Threat to America".
3. The Trump Administration's rollback of environmental protections is addressed in another political piece titled "The Trump Administration's Rollback of Environmental Protections".
4. The criminalization of environmental activism, a topic relevant to the case of Jasilyn Charger and the Keystone XL Pipeline, is a point of concern, as discussed in the social-media post "#EndEnvironmentalCriminalization".
5. Climate activists in Washington D.C. have faced mass arrests during rallies, an issue highlighted in the general-news article "Capital Police Crackdown: Arrests of Climate Activists in Washington D.C.".
6. In the field of environmental science, the human-caused climate crisis and the global pandemic have contributed to the perspective of water protectors that their struggle is a matter of life or death, as articulated by Chase Iron Eyes.
7. Furthermore, the relationship between law enforcement and marginalized communities, including environmental activists, is complicated by historical factors such as the origins of American police departments in 18th century slave patrols, a point made by the social-media infographic "#PolicingThePast".

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