Social media captures chaos at Standing Rock as police, anti-pipeline demonstrators face off

"This is a brutal assault on people that are doing nothing more than trying to protect their drinking water and in this case, trying to clear the road," said Tara Houska, a Washington-based attorney who is originally from the Couchiching First Nation in Ontario.

The incident began on Sunday afternoon when people from the Oceti Sakowin camp where thousands of people opposed to the $3.78-billion Dakota Access pipeline have been gathering for months tried to remove two burned-out trucks from the Backwater Bridge on route 1806, located just north of the reservation.

"It was to open up the road so in the daylight the world can see the face of militarized law enforcement and state oppression," wrote Dallas Goldtooth, organizer with the Indigenous Environmental Network, on Facebook.

Morton County sheriff's department is using a f**king water cannon on our water protectors! Its 25 degrees Fahrenheit outside right now. pic.twitter.com/5S5JaIrRgK

—@dallasgoldtooth

As the night wore on, the situation on and around the bridge intensified, with people from the camp utilizing makeshift shields to protect themselves from the water cannons and rubber bullets. Videos from the scene show the air thick with tear gas, smoke and steam from freezing water while people yell, sing and drum.

VIDEO: Shots fired + tear gassed unprovoked into crowd of #WaterProtectors in Ceremony #NoDAPL #StandingRock pic.twitter.com/PKg7gsNa0R

—@IAreDick

A group called the Standing Rock Medic & Healer Council, which was set up to provide medical aid to people in the camps, reported dozens of injuries and used its Facebook page to issue an appeal for for medical supplies and warm blankets.


Others posted photos of their own injuries, including one demonstrator named Aidoneus Bishop.

"Just got shot in the hand and back with rubber bullets," Bishop wrote on Facebook.

There was outrage and condemnation for police and authorities from a wide-range of people, including environmentalist and former American vice-president Al Gore.

Using water cannons in subfreezing temperatures is inhumane. Justice requires non-violence by all. #NoDAPL

—@algore

Actor Susan Sarandon was among several celebrities who also used their social media profiles to speak out about the confrontation on Sunday, urging her followers to contact the White House to complain.

The lines are busy at the White House but keep trying. Tell @POTUS that this can't happen in our name. (202) 456-1111 #NoDAPL https://t.co/35ereQ0rZP

—@SusanSarandon

While Amnesty International launched a campaign calling on authorities in North Dakota to scale back its response to demonstrations, including asking police not to wear riot gear.

It's time to call on North Dakota police to respect the #humanrights of those opposing the Dakota Access Pipeline. https://t.co/uNCwghJkJP pic.twitter.com/XI3z7R1RDP

—@amnesty