White Buffalo Calf Woman Society: Protect women and children from Keystone XL ‘man camps’
PICKSTOWN, South Dakota — The White Buffalo Calf Woman Society, Inc. is one of many partners supporting the Protect the Sacred II Conference: Protect the Women and Children From Keystone XL Violence Say No To Man Camps in Oceti Sacowin Territory being held today and tomorrow in Pickstown, SD. The topics include the statistics about violence against Indian women and the current conditions facing Indian reservations and communities in the Great Plains Region with “Man Camps.”
“This gathering helps us prepare for the onslaught of violence against women and families that energy development brings against our people. These so-called man camps increase alcohol and drug related crimes and violent crimes, including sexual assault and human trafficking. We want to be sure that the people are aware of violence against women in this context, and begin to prepare for what our relatives in the North are already going through,” says Janet A. Routzen, Esq., who recently began serving the WBCWS as the Executive Director in May 2013.
The Ihanktkonwan Treaty Council and Brave Heart Society are hosting the events in partnership with the Oceti Sacowin Tribes and Treaty Councils, along with the WBCWS, Spirit Lake Domestic Violence & Sexual Assault Program, Ft. Berthold Victims Services Program, Wica Algi, Native Women’s Society of the Great Plain, South Dakota Coalition Ending Domestic & Sexual Violence and the First Nations-Women’s Alliance of North Dakota.
Routzen also states, “I urge all of our relatives to take the prospect of the Keystone XL Pipeline very seriously and express many thanks to Faith Spotted Eagle for her fearless leadership. We as WBCWS are committed to ensuring the safety, health and healing of the women, children and men who are affected by crimes like domestic violence, sexual assault and stalking. Regardless of the jurisdiction or race of perpetrators and victims, our people deserve protection and justice.”
The White Buffalo Calf Woman Society is a domestic violence shelter and advocacy organization for victims of violent crime, including sexual assault and stalking. The organization has been in existence for thirty-five years on the Rosebud reservation and provides critical services to the Rosebud and Pine Ridge reservations.
Gathering updates from Native Women’s Society of the Great Plains:
Faith Spotted Eagle, one of the coordinators of the Protect the Sacred II conference with Brittany Poor Bear, a young lady with the Brave Heart Society at the opening of the conference yesterday. Brittany helped open the
conference with a prayer all in Lakota. The Protect the Sacred Conference II ‘Protect the Women & Families from KXL Violence’ started yesterday August 16 and ends today at the Fort Randall Casino, Pickstown, SD. The conferences line up of speakers presented valuable information on the man camps of the proposed Keystone XL Pipeline near Yankton, Rosebud and Cheyenne River Sioux reservations. The conference was organized to promote awareness of the negative influences in the man camps, which include sex trafficking, sexual assaults and prostitution and increased drug use.
Jane Kleeb of Nebraska Bold, spoke of the people in Nebraska that are against the proposed pipeline, they have been essentially challenging the way Nebraska is accepting the pipeline. Awareness to and organization of land owners along the proposed route of the pipeline has been one of the group’s methods. Montana and South Dakota have 99 percent of landowners signed and 35 to 40 percent of Nebraska land owners signed. The proposed pipeline will bring man camps, a concern of the Protect the Sacred Conference that ends today at the Fort Randall Casino on the Yankton Sioux Reservation.
Sadie Young Bird, of the Fort Berthold Coalition Against Domestic Violence, of New Town, ND, near the hub of the Bakken oil range, spoke to the group at the Protecting the Sacred II conference on Friday about the issues they face with the oil development and the man camps they currently have. They have a population influx of 30,000, with not a lot of new stores to meet the demand; the tribe doesn’t have a good collaboration with the county law enforcement; sex offenders list has increased a lot and increase of meth use. ‘Nobody told us what will happen, we learned it on our own,’ she said. She worries about her staff’s safety, don’t do transports alone and they don’t have enough workers to service our area. The stories of man camps will become reality, she said. Her program had 230 cases in 2012 and so far this year they have had 160 cases. The workers are protected by the man camps owners, hard to get them prosecuted. ‘The social impact is what is tearing us apart.’
Wiyaka Chasing Hawk and Chase Iron Eyes were
honored with a song before the start of the Protect the Sacred Conference II on Friday morning. The three young men and others either rode their bike or ran from Wagner, SD to the Fort Randall Casino of ten miles in the Honor Our Native Families and Mother Earth bike run. The purpose of the bike run was for the level of concern for Mother Earth and the people and what lengths one will go to show compassion for families and to emphasize the benefits of alternative means of transportation in Indian country.
Jo Lynn Wolf spoke of the issues of the relationship of murdered and missing women in Canada in industrial predation in Indigenous communities at the Protecting the Sacred II conference on Friday, August 16th. There is an average of 600 missing women and her stories of families trying to find the missing women and the heartache that goes with it. She emphasized how the issues of the war on our women is important and they bring the message of ‘what is happening to our young women and the need to protect each other.’
Melissa Merrick of Spirit Lake Victim’s Assistance and Summer Lunderman of White Buffalo Calf Women’s Society of Rosebud helped coordinate the Protecting the Sacred II Conference to bring awareness to tribal communities of the dangers of the proposed man camps of the XL TarSands Pipeline. The proposed camps will be near Rosebud, Cheyenne River and Yankton Sioux reservations.
Cyril ‘Whitey’ Scott, president of the Rosebud Sioux Tribe, spoke of several cases that occurred on the Rosebud Sioux Tribe involving perpetrators trying to lure girls into trafficking. He emphasized the use of Facebook and social networking was a tool used by recruiters. Present at the Protect the Sacred Conference II on Friday, August 16th were tribal officials from Rosebud and from the Yankton Sioux Reservation. There needs to be awareness to tribal officials on Cheyenne River and Santee Sioux, where the proposed man camps will be nearby.
Brendan Johnson, United States Attorney for the district of South Dakota, spoke at the Protecting the Sacred II conference on the increased prosecution rates of sex trafficking in South Dakota, especially of the ‘johns’ in the cases. South Dakota has had more than a dozen cases so far of sex trafficking, which included well over 50 victims in the Sioux Falls area. He emphasized many of the victims of the sex trafficking cases were Native American girls. It is not only the ‘pimps’ being prosecuted but the ‘johns’ as well. A sting operation was recently conducted during the Sturgis Rally utilizing the federal sex trafficking statue. Many questions were posed to Johnson from tribal members on how would tribes be able to handle jurisdiction issues of non-Indians from the man camps. The criminal issues of the man camps would be in the jurisdiction of the county law enforcements from which the proposed man camps will be built. Law enforcement will need training, both county and tribal. 
A man camp is proposed 10 miles from the Cheyenne River reservation on land owned by Dean Wink, Speaker Pro Tempore of the SD House of Representatives. TransCanada does not need a conditional use permit from Meade County. This proposed man camp will have a far greater impact on Ziebach County residents as most Meade County residents live in Faith or Sturgis. Ziebach County has a population of 2800, 35 percent under 18, 50 percent women, 24 percent white and 71 percent Native American. It is the fourth poorest county in the nation with a ranch economy. It is estimated the man camp will bring over $500,000 in revenue to Meade County. The closest medical facility is in 
Spearfish 97 miles away. Howes has 140 residents.
Fort Peck, MT (Valley County) man camp will be located 25 miles of Fort Peck Lake and Fort Peck reservation. Valley County has a population of 7,500, 22 percent under 18, 49 percent ar women, 87 percent are white and 10 percent are Native. Closet medical facility is in Ft. Peck and largest hospital in near Billings.
In Nebraska, the pipeline plan is to have man camp near O’Neill, Neb, located 50 miles from Santee Reservation and 60 miles from the Yankton Reservation. Holt County recently passed a resolution against crude or tar sands pipelines. O’Neill has a population of 4000.
