The Natives: This Is Our America

GUNFIRE

Hello, United Kingdom.

Greetings from the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation.

SINGING

Pine Ridge - home to 40,000 Native Americans.

Once, the Sioux tribe roamed the Great Plains.

But after generations of war with the US Government

and decades of broken agreements and promises,

they are left here on the place they call "the Rez".

In the heart of the richest nation on Earth,

many of the Lakota live in striking poverty.

Struggling with drugs, alcohol and illness.

But something is changing.

They tried to bury us.

We are like seeds, they didn't realise it.

They buried us, we are only growing back stronger and better.

People on the Rez are fed up with the bad name they have got

and there is a new story they want to tell.

About protecting their ancient traditions.

Human life is more important than greed.

A new generation of tribal activists are fighting to stop

a 1 billion oil pipeline and young Natives rediscovering

their history are hitting the headlines.

All right, let's get everybody here.

Yeah, got you.

My name is Sundown.

You've been walking around with these three students here.

I don't want to go first. I don't want to go first.

We're going to have some fun, enjoy it.

Wait, so the practice round is one shot, right?

We'll probably give you five.

All right.

Remember, take your time.

Active shooting is not violent, just what the bullet does,

you need to be nice and calm.

And just smooth.

We're going to have a whole week at the Little Wound High School

dedicated to honouring our relative,

the buffalo of the northern plains, bison, I guess you would call it.

And now, we don't got the bow and arrow, we got a Wetherby 30-06.

It makes it a little bit easier!

The best shooter will be awarded the honour of killing

a buffalo in one week's time.

This is a competition, yeah.

It will be more than a hunt.

They are all competing to become young Lakota warriors.

9...31.

It's only the second time the school has done this.

-All right!

-Slightly disappointed.

Second one, you can show to your mom.

Yeah, second one, I'm proud about it.

All right, so we qualified the three boys and Arthur got

first place, so he will have the first opportunity.

I'll take it!

Arthur shot the best.

I shot the best.

I feel excited,

blessed with the opportunity to do this.

I feel pretty great about it, honestly.

One bull's-eye and all the rest are nines.

-WOMAN ON RADIO:

-All right, good morning, Pine Ridge Reservation!

This is Melanie at 90.1 KILI Radio.

The only Lakota radio station for miles around!

It's a beautiful, sunshiny day.

You're always awesome, Lakota Land.

Life here is a mix of modern American culture...

HORN BEEPS

..and Native traditions.

-ARTHUR:

-Being Lakota is a good thing, if you ask me.

I really started, like, following the Lakota way when I was just,

you know, a little kid myself.

18-year-old Arthur's girlfriend is nine months pregnant

so he will be raising his own kids soon.

When I told everyone I was going to be a father,

my uncles, their eyes got big.

They looked at me, like, really?

We were having a cookout.

We had cake and when I told everyone I was going to be

a father and everyone was like ...

Then my grandma was, like, licking the frosting off of that cake.

Just kind of funny, if you ask me.

I'm Tyrone.

I'm a junior and I'm walking to school now.

Many teenagers on Pine Ridge drop out of school and only

a tiny number go to university.

Little Wound High wants to change that.

I think it's a really good school.

A lot of people really stick together here and help each

other work on what they are working for in the future.

It may look like any other American school,

but Little Wound believes it has a sacred mission to teach

the next generation what it means to be Lakota.

I don't know, you just get more connected into the school and

to our culture.

Just, I don't know, something.

There is no big businesses on Pine Ridge and unemployment runs

between 80% to 90%.

Yeah.

But Tyrone has plans for the future.

Two colleges that I have in mind is South Dakota State and

Chadron State College.

I want to go into architecture.

Education is key, especially around here.

You can't get a job nowhere and just,

your life is pretty much just going to be a little bit horrible.

If you don't get a job.

The Rez has its own borders, its own president and a tribal council.

But it's US Government cash that keeps the place running.

Just about.

We're getting ready for the zombie walk, ladies and gentlemen!

Despite this, people who live here go all-out for Halloween.

Honk your horns!

HORNS HONK

Zombies are coming to town!

The zombie walk ...

We're going to bite people.

MUSIC BLARES FROM TRUCK

Welcome to the Pine Ridge zombie walk!

It's a rare chance for young Natives like Sky to help bring

the community together.

Just look at all of them!

Our goal is to get these kids more in touch with the community.

They are all ready to show Pine Ridge

that the zombies are in town this Halloween!

It's a tradition!

It's hard for many tribes to move on from decades of discrimination

when they feel history keeps repeating itself.

At the neighbouring Standing Rock reservation, there has been

a stand-off between mainly Native American protesters...

People are really clearly saying

they are not going to get out of the way.

..and a police force defending a billion-dollar oil pipeline.

You in the crowd, move to the south!

Most Natives think it will pollute water supplies and destroy

ancient burial grounds.

Guys! You're doing wrong!

-Move along!

-This is Sioux Nation land!

The oil companies say the pipeline is safe,

environmentally friendly and economically important to the US.

THEY CHANT

It hasn't stopped the protests.

I'm here to protect our water.

And the issue has been firing up the tribes.

Especially on Pine Ridge.

RAP MUSIC

Dakota Access Pipeline - that's what the DAPL stands for,

that's the pipeline that's trying to be built up in North Dakota

that goes down into the Missouri River.

Our people, we just strongly believe that that is going to

mess up our watering system and that is really all-important to us.

So we just really want to take care and stop the pipeline being put in.

RAPPER: Build that pipeline and I'm burning down your oil...

Where can I set it so people can see it easily?

This is like, one of the most... Like, when people hang up things,

it is in this area.

When it first started out, it was just the Standing Rock Natives

that were up there protesting

and then, when we all found out that was when they were like,

all tribes are going up there.

Now there's hundreds of tribes up there and thousands of people,

so it's kind of a big outbreak.

PA INDISTINCT

Nearly 200 demonstrators have been arrested

since the movement started eight months ago.

Taser! Taser!

SCREAMING

Who tends to dominate our society?

At Little Wound High, the pipeline's a popular topic.

A good example, or the best example I can think of, is North Dakota.

-The DLP...

-Oh, DAPL. OK.

If anyone read the New York Times over the weekend...

Some guys in Oregon took over a wildlife federal office -

all white people - and these white protesters got off,

got completely off, no charges, nothing, right?

At the same time, 150 Native protesters

got arrested over the weekend at the DAPL camp, right?

This is my understanding. I don't know, I wasn't there,

but this is what the New York Times said.

So it's kind of weird how, like, these white people

did the same thing, nothing happened.

Native Americans do the same thing, 100 of them get arrested.

The second question - who gets to write the history books?

Cyrus Huncharek's English class also covers politics and history.

When I was growing up in Texas,

the books were about the Pilgrims and how they got along with

the Natives and it was all hunky-dory,

and how, like, these Pilgrims had a mandate by God

to come to this country and establish it.

Today, there is still segregation, right,

but it's still not formalised.

I would argue the Rez is kind of segregated, wouldn't you say that?

Cyrus has a tough job.

As a Wasichu, or white man, he is part of the people

who defeated the Lakota and who put them here.

So take two minutes to discuss the whites, maybe.

Sure, that's kind of the camp I'm in.

Why would you say that we are segregated

when your people are the ones who put us in the...

-on the Rez?

-Yeah...

You guys are the ones who put us on the...

Who put us in these little boxes.

Putting us here like we're cattle, or like we're...

-like we're animals.

-Sure.

Lots of people never leave the Rez, they just can't afford it.

The nearest shopping mall is over the border and 100 miles away.

'All right, once again you're listening to KILI Radio 90.1.'

So there's not much to do.

'Don't forget, this is Red Ribbon Week.'

Anti-drug and alcohol. Check out your local schools.

'I know the children have red ribbons to hand out.

'You can put them on your cars,

'but let's be anti-drug and alcohol this week.

'Keep it awesome, Lakota Land.'

Alcohol and drugs are a massive problem on the Rez,

where 50% of people live below the poverty line.

Life expectancy is 52 years old.

Eileen and I are here to say, "Hey, it can't be all bad."

It's not.

Youth worker Tiny D does her best to remain positive.

I love the reservation. I love the open space.

I love the scenery. I just love the people.

Wherever I go, I know somebody or somebody knows me.

I'm always defending my home because we are the Great Sioux Nation.

Well, I can look back at our seven virtues, our values of life,

you know, being respectful, having fortitude, you know, bravery...

Eileen, help me out, what are the other ones?

And wisdom.

Be able to share wisdom.

Being Lakota?

I don't know, have you ever asked somebody,

"What does it feel like to be white?"

I'm not going to go one step further until I get your attention.

Today, Tiny's at Rockyford Primary School.

We're here for Red Ribbon Week.

The kids here are aged between eight and 10.

Sadly, on Pine Ridge, that's not too young to be in danger.

As a Lakota, you can always stand up because that's our strength.

Our people never had alcohol

and drugs in their life until the late 1800s

when they put us on reservations.

We have had people murdered on the reservation because of drugs.

Meth is something that is man-made.

Our youngest meth user that overdosed

on the Pine Ridge Reservation was ten years old.

Look at that.

GROANING

When you grow older,

you don't want a girlfriend who has teeth like that, boys.

Or, girls, you don't want a boyfriend with teeth like that.

Tiny D's life is scarred by the same problems as everyone else.

I've had a hard six weeks.

Her own daughter is an alcoholic.

I lost a granddaughter.

Her name was Tabria.

Some of you might know Tabria.

She loved coming out here because she loved the gym.

She said this was the most awesome, the best gym on the Rez.

And she had an accident, but it shouldn't have happened.

She and a couple of other 11-year-old friends

decided to go for a cruise.

Her mom was drinking,

so Mommy gave her the car keys.

Tabria wasn't driving the car, she wasn't.

She was sitting on top of the car.

The car ran over her.

It smashed her...

The side of her head.

She didn't have a chance.

And I was so angry.

I was angry.

Then I blamed myself.

But I look back at it...

Alcohol is a drug.

Would anybody like to share something?

Yes?

Take that, hon.

Thank you for sharing.

And you want her to stop?

It's OK.

Take your time, OK?

This month, the meth epidemic hit a new high.

OK, if you guys could come in closer

and make a circle around our memorial here.

A few days ago, Vinny Brewer was shot dead by drug dealers

outside a youth centre.

HE SIGHS

It's been a hard five days.

Meth's killing our people.

Vinny hated it

and that side of his life...

His death is going to help us.

From here on out, we've got to beat this.

We've got to stick together.

'The reservation was created generations and generations ago

'but created a cycle of poverty and it's all handed down.'

The candles.

OK, now, let's light our candles.

'There are no jobs and some vicious cycle.

'So you have babies having babies. We have alcohol and drugs.

'We have kids that are overdosing on pills.

'Every day is a challenge to me.

'Every day is a challenge.'

But there is new hope.

BELL RINGS

Tribal schools believe that education

and a revival of Lakota ways

can break the cycle of poverty and crime.

Hi, so a buffalo chip is a piece of the shit...

HE SPEAKS OWN LANGUAGE

That's the only way I could say it.

That's the perfect way I could say it.

'It's their identity.

'Without their identity, they'll be lost.'

More lost than we currently are now.

There are seven known ways to hunt the buffalo in deep snow.

'When I started school, I wanted to be the ultimate gangster,

'the ultimate... Everything I'd seen on TV.'

Up until about 23 years old, I didn't know anything about culture.

I didn't know I had options.

You know, it saved my life.

-Then oxygen is what?

-Oxygen is O. Nitrogen is N.

It's not just tradition the school teaches.

All right, all right, I've got it...

Arthur wants to study medicine.

Not too many Natives go to college.

Most of it's because college is too expensive, to be honest.

The college I would like to go to for neurology is

the University of Washington.

'I'm not sure if they have the best department,'

but I always wanted to go to there.

It's a nice campus, from the pictures.

Keep coming! Hold on to the pole until we get it stood up.

Tomorrow is the Little Wound High buffalo kill,

so students are learning how their ancestors

would have prepared themselves.

Just like that, then slide it through your hands.

The Government banned Lakota religious ceremonies until 1978.

We weren't allowed to have our sun dances

and our sweats and whatnot, because they always

thought we were gathering to become...

..rebellious again, you know,

against the United States Government.

One more.

Arthur's been picked to kill the buffalo

after he won the shooting competition.

I'm feeling pretty excited about the buffalo kill, to be honest.

It'll make a big impact on my life, honestly.

I think the only way to prepare myself

is, like, to keep thinking about, like,

"This is going to feed the community."

I just can't get over it, honestly!

It's a big thing for me.

All right, boys, Lance is looking for people to go cut wood,

so I said you'd be a good one.

But Arthur can't stay any longer.

I guess this is it.

He's just received an urgent call.

His girlfriend's gone into labour.

So he'll lose the chance to take part in the buffalo kill.

Oh, Tony Frosted Flakes. No way!

Those ones are there, too. A whole box of them.

-I've got to test them to make sure they're not stale.

-Yeah, right.

M-hm, they're good.

We are loading up to go to Cannon Ball, North Dakota -

to the Standing Rock Reservation,

to the front line, to fight the pipeline.

Tiny D are her youth group are taking up supplies

for the protesters.

She has toothpaste around here. Right here - toothpaste.

16-year-old Sky was born a girl called Brianna,

but identifies as a boy.

Two years back, I came out as transgender.

And everywhere I go, it's just like, "Is that a boy? Is that a girl?

"Why are they going into the girls' bathroom?

"Why are they dressing like that?"

And it was just at the point where everyone was calling me "It".

I tried to hang myself.

I tried to slit my wrists deep enough.

I've taken pills.

I've once held a .39mm gun to my head.

I've been bullied since kindergarten.

And I dropped out of school many times.

So...

It wasn't just the kids, it was just everyone around me that made me

feel like I was hopeless, that, you know, no-one was going to accept me.

And when I grew up...

..it was...

it was hard because, you know...

I've come out to my friends and everything,

but I still haven't...

I've tried coming out to my mom, but she just says I'm confused.

When I told my dad, he told me that he didn't want to be

a part of my life any more and that I wasn't considered his blood.

Sky is not alone in his suicide attempts.

The teen suicide rate on Pine Ridge is said to be four times

higher than the US average.

These are going to be going back up again and again and again.

OK, let's roll. Yeah! Let's rock and roll.

Y'all better have on deodorant, I'm serious.

Let's take Febreze to spray on them if they don't use deodorant.

Whoo!

Going to Cannon Ball!

INTERVIEWER: What do you think it's going to be like?

Oh, just going to try not to get shot, you know?

Yeah, if they pull me over for anything,

I'm going to pray in their face.

THEY LAUGH

Tiny has always urged Sky to talk through his problems.

To me, I think what really matters is if the person wants to be

what they want to be, then they can be it.

You've come a long, long, long ways.

-From the time you was a little girl sitting in the park.

-Yeah.

There are times when I still catch myself calling you Bri.

But I'm getting better.

Every time you tried to take your life, I was there.

And when you bounced back,

each time you bounced back, you got a little bit stronger.

This is who you are, this is what you want.

But I don't see you switching back, that's just what I'm trying to say.

-Yeah.

-That's how strong you are.

In our culture,

our many young women who chose the opposite sex are special.

Before Christianity arrived in America, being gay or trans

was actually an accepted part of Native American life.

They were special, they were sacred, they were...

Sacred, and to look at them in a sacred manner.

When you're born Lakota, you have already some things against you,

and that's OK because it makes you stronger as you grow.

You proved them wrong.

-BABY CRIES

-Oh! The other way, I'm sorry.

Arthur's girlfriend Jordan is out of hospital with their baby.

You're OK.

She's moved in with him and the rest of his five-strong family.

I'm holding my daughter,

my beautiful daughter, who's kind of frowning at me.

And my beautiful girlfriend, right here.

I cried. She came out the womb...

Surprisingly, she didn't cry.

Before she did, she was just looking round,

like she was just ready for the world.

Oh, she just farted.

She farts like a man.

Farts like crazy.

It's not unusual for several generations to share

a house on the Rez.

Some homes have no power or running water.

But Arthur is lucky - his family home

has both and is well looked after.

I have to do this, like...

..middle of the night.

It's really tiring,

because even as she sleeps, I still wake up to check on her and...

She's with me 24/7.

Arthur's up against the steep high school dropout rate on the Rez.

It's kind of stressful, because I'm still in school.

A high school student, at that.

I want her to be more successful than I am,

I want her to have more awards than I do.

Like being a top student in her school, wherever she goes.

Yeah.

-RADIO:

-Good morning, KILI listeners, Lakota Land.

-The Little Wound drive...

-Whoo!

They are working on getting cold weather gear

for those at Standing Rock.

The water protectors, they need any type of winter gear -

coats, hats, gloves - for the winter months.

Let's get out there and stand with Standing Rock.

The protest camp has expanded to house several thousand activists.

-Everybody, look.

-Oh, awesome!

And more are pouring in.

Oh, man, isn't this beautiful?

-This is a lot of people.

-This is just beautiful.

This is the best thing I've ever seen.

You guys ready for the front lines?

Not yet. A little bit, though.

You can see the DAPL guys right there, you see them?

Yeah, I see them.

90% of us in this camp were right there on the front line.

Going to jail, getting made, you know?

We were running people back here and flashing our eyes

and running back up there.

It was an amazing day, that day.

-That aeroplane just goes in circles all night.

-Jesus.

-That drone's constant drone.

-PLANE DRONES

-Long time, no see.

-Oh, how are you?

-How you doing? Long time, no see.

Look around, see where we're going to set up camp.

Kind of weird to see these people have been here since the beginning.

Hundreds of tribes have put aside ancient disputes...

SHE ULULATES

..to join forces against the oil company and the Federal Government.

People are coming in from Minnesota.

All right, Minnesota, loud and proud!

The protest is now one of the largest in tribal history.

Oklahoma!

Nebraska.

That's some family members. Good afternoon!

Native American religion, forced underground for so many years,

is becoming a real part of these people's lives.

When we come to the circle, we bring our respect.

You know, we're bringing the honour to be here.

Most of the time, filming any ceremonies is forbidden.

When we circle up, we are making a strong circle of life.

THEY SING

You've earned a feather.

But this time, they're keen to show young warriors being honoured

with eagle feathers for making the journey to the protest front line.

You took that challenge, showed your bravery,

left your homes and your mom and dad to come here to be a part of this.

I honour you that way with those feathers.

Now we're going to pray with this.

THEY SING

Here's some jackets.

Winter on the plains can get seriously cold.

And some kids' socks.

The protestors have vowed to stay put until the pipeline is stopped.

Everyone's nice here.

Normally, in Pine Ridge, you look at a Native, they just look at you...

like, "I don't know you, don't look at me."

But when you just look at other people here, they're just like,

"Oh, hi!" They smile.

They smile and they don't mean mug you.

INTERVIEWER: What does mean mug mean?

-I knew that question was going to come up somehow.

-Basically...

That's actually how we live, cos everyone's mean on our Rez,

and it'd be nice to come back here and everyone be like,

"Oh, hey, come on in. Have some food if you want."

On Facebook they make it seem like it's very violent and just...

..negative here, but, honestly, it's not.

It's, like, very calm and peaceful.

Oh! Stop it!

-RADIO:

-All right, once again, you're listening to KILI Radio.

I am going to play you the White Buffalo Calf Song.

That's the sacredness of our tatanka, our buffaloes.

At Little Wound High, it's the day of the hunt.

INTERVIEWER: Who's going to be shooting the buffalo here?

Dawson.

Arthur wasn't able to make it,

so all the pressure is on reserve shooter Dawson.

-Nervous?

-Yeah.

He didn't show up to shoot, so that leaves me.

You guys might get the chance to see a buffalo get shot today.

It's an event for the whole school to witness.

All right, you guys, get in a circle.

Morning.

No squares.

A circle! You guys know what a circle is.

All right, hold it down!

We have a young man, young warrior that's going to shoot

the buffalo today, and I ask that you all pray for him.

It's probably the first time that he's going to do this

and he's nervous.

Let's support this young man that's going to go on this hunt.

Support him and pray for him.

That's what this day is about, to guide you so that you have

maybe a different point of view than what you've always had.

Dawson, you're riding with Dawson. All right. Let's go.

I feel ready.

Just got to get in position and make sure it's clear

from the herd.

-There's one behind him to the left.

-Middle...about halfway up.

Think I could put these down and I could lay down?

You're not comfortable here, or what?

I think I'd shoot better laying down, but...

You're OK...

-He's in that line of, like, four?

-Yeah.

Just keep your eye on him.

-I'm kind of shaky right now.

-Relax, take some deep breaths.

-Keep your eye on him.

-I think I lost him.

Back there, see him? All by himself.

Further left.

Again.

-You see him?

-Yeah.

-OK, blast him again.

Oh...

That was a good shot, your barrel was steady on that one.

They're coming out pretty quick.

They're pretty tough, man.

We say our prayer, and we have to

give them to say goodbye to their relatives and say their prayers.

See, there's one up to him now,

talking to him or praying with him.

He'll be a relative, maybe a mother or an auntie or something.

I feel good. I'm happy I only took two shots.

The first shot was kind of high but the second shot,

I think I redeemed myself.

He's still warm.

Buffalo was the traditional food of the Sioux.

One, two, three.

It was a sacred animal, almost wiped out by white hunters.

It's why today is so important.

All the students are happy about it.

I'm excited, I'm really, really happy about it.

CHANTING

We've got buffalo meat!

It's pretty neat,

that was only the second student that ever shot the buffalo.

The buffalo meat will feed Little Wound High

as it gathers to celebrate.

-It was pretty all right.

-Was it?

-Yes.

-You did really good.

THEY LAUGH

BELLS JANGLE

Arthur is also being honoured in the powwow,

the final stage of the coming of age ceremony.

CHANTING

Becoming a father means he missed out on killing the buffalo.

I looked at my baby pictures and she looked exactly like me,

only I was a bit chubbier.

But it also means he's now determined to plan for the future.

Best thing for me to do for her is to go to college and still

attend medical school.

By the time I get my medical degree she'll be at least 12 years old.

Each generation has to carry on our culture.

They have to carry on our language.

I am going to teach her the ways...

..and be the best father I can be to her.

CHANTING

A convoy from the Standing Rock camp is heading to the local

courthouse to protest against police arrests.

Love and prayer, people march.

The police have arrested around 200 protesters for acts

-of civil disobedience.

-Hurry up!

Including trespassing on construction sites and

locking themselves to bulldozers.

We're going to join the peaceful walk of prayer.

I believe they're going to walk to the courthouse.

So I'm hoping the kids that are with us see this

and understand why we're doing it.

I don't want their children, their grandchildren,

to drink oil.

DRUMS BEAT

CHANTING

SHE JOINS IN SINGING

Look at this, the whole block is surrounded by people that are

against the oil.

If that don't say something, I don't know what will, you know?

Hey, how are you?

This day has been a long time coming.

Our people have waited for this day for a few centuries.

We are here to forgive you and look at you like our family.

You are our family.

Stand with us, be on the right side of history.

The side of history that protects the future of mankind.

Single file, Indian style.

It's a good day to forgive.

It's a good day to be humble

and kind of turn the tables and forgive the people who are trying to

do their jobs and I know they feel bad about putting people in jail,

but it's a good day to forgive and I just hope that the officers

and the people on the other side that we're forgiving,

take it as that, in a good way.

-Good morning.

-Morning.

I feel bad.

You hate to leave, but we've got to go.

While everyone else in the camp is staying for the long term,

Sky and his friends have to go back to Pine Ridge.

I kind of want to stay here a little longer because I've got to

know so many people and talked to so many people.

It's going to change my perspective. Smile.

Now that I've got more friends I've got more support,

I just wake up smiling.

This camp is a tribe that helps each other out and even if

they're not blood related, they're all relatives, they're all family.

It's a beautiful way of life. That's what keeps us together as

a Lakota nation, is our culture.

We'll be back!

It's important for everybody to know who they are.

I'm proud of being Lakota because we're a unique group of

people that have refused to give in to the Government.

We refuse to change our ways. We refuse to go down.

We're going to stand strong.

In December 2016, the Obama administration ordered

a halt to the Dakota Access Pipeline.

# Stand up for the First Nation... #

It was a victory for the Sioux and the people who supported them.

But the new President, Donald Trump,

has signed an executive order to reverse the decision.

Despite this, the battle has inspired

a new generation of Native Americans on Pine Ridge

and they say they're ready to resume the fight.

MUSIC: Stand Up/Stand N Rock By Taboo

# Too long, my Native people

# Recognise yourself Keep your head up

# Too long, my tribal people

# Recognise yourself Keep your head up... #

One, two, three.

That is a real super villain, right there.

DALP.

And then us, and everyone of us is a superhero. That's so cool.

MUSIC: Stand Up/Stand N Rock By Taboo

# Too long, my Native people

# Recognise yourself Keep your head up

# Too long, my tribal people

# Recognise yourself Keep your head up

# Too long, my Native people

# Too long, the original people

# Too long, my indigenous people

# Recognise yourself Keep your head up

# Stand up, stand up, stand up, stand up

# Stand up, stand up, stand up

# Stand up, stand up, stand up

# Standing Rock, Standing Rock

# At Standing Rock we're standing feet

# As history is on a sad repeat

# Is it liberty or we just acting free?

# As our land depletes from these hands of greed

# See fate is found as we face the hounds

# Take a bow for these sacred grounds

# Make a sound that'll shake them out

# Sing aloud, what can save us now?

-#

-What can save us now?

-Stand up, stand up. #