The story of the Dakota Access Pipeline is a long and difficult
one to tell. On its face it is the story of the hundreds of Native
American tribes that have have moved into camps just outside of
Cannonball, ND in a show of solidarity and to protest the
pipeline.
These high profile protests, however, are a small part of a much
larger issue. The pipeline brought to a head conflicts about
disputed treaty lands, historical treatment of Native Americans
by the Federal Government and the changing relationship
between the predominantly white towns of Bismarck / Mandan to
the north and the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation to the south.
“The Black Snake” focuses on the people involved in the decision
making process, the elders who’ve lived the Tribe’s history and
the younger generation of Sioux who will continue to live and
raise their families next to the river after the dust has settled.
