LaCreek, Pass Creek vote to accept KXL Pipeline money

Pictured demonstrating at the South Dakota State Capitol on Feb. 18 are pipeline resisters from Cheyenne River, Lower Brule and other Sioux tribes. (Photo courtesy Indigenous Rising Media)

PINE RIDGE – the Oglala Sioux Tribe Finance Committee delayed action until Feb. 27 on a $50,000 “propane donation” check from the promoters of the tribally opposed Keystone XL Pipeline construction.
The committee on Feb. 6 passed a resolution ordering the tribal attorney to conduct an independent investigation into the whereabouts of the check issued to the Oglala Sioux Tribe by TransCanada Corp.
A report on the investigation was due at the committee meeting Feb. 20. However, when informed that it was not yet available, the committee tabled action on the agenda item until its next meeting.
The committee approved a second resolution strengthening the previous one by specifically asking the attorney for a timeline detailing who initiated the request for the money and where the check has been since its Nov. 29 issue.
Meanwhile, as of press time Feb. 24, TransCanada Corp. has not replied to Native Sun News Today inquiries about whether officials of the Oglala Sioux Tribe or its LaCreek District returned a $50,000 “propane donation” check.
Native Sun News Today queried the company via telephone and email messages on Feb. 17 and received the following answer: “We will respond within two to three business days.”
On Feb. 18, Tribal Council Rep. Everett Little Whiteman told the Native Sun News that lack of participation by tribal members in Tribal Council and District Council meetings can put elected leaders at odds with the voters on open issues such as pipeline construction and reservation alcohol sales.
“The Lakota people must stand up and voice their concerns to the District Councils, District Representatives and Tribal Representatives,” he said. “As long as our people stand together on all the important issues and voice their concerns to the leaders, we can control a lot of the activities.”
At the LaCreek District Council meeting of Jan. 15, South Dakota state-chartered Wild Horse Butte Community Development Corp. Executive Director Kimmie Clausen told the more than two dozen participants that she had a check in the amount of $50,000, according to minutes.
She said that half of it “will need to be distributed to Pass Creek District.”
She noted, however, that the check was made out to the Oglala Sioux Tribe and “OST won’t cash the check because of political issues,” the minutes read. “The OST President is against the pipeline,” they say.
District Council Rep. Desiree White Eyes moved to “send the check back” to the Tribal Council and get two replacement checks of $25,000 for each of LaCreek and Pass Creek districts. Council Rep. Linda Louden seconded the motion. It passed unanimously with a 21-0 vote.
The amount must be distributed “fairly to district members for propane or electricity assistance,” according to the resolution.
After the District Council vote, LaCreek District Tribal Rep. Craig Dillon told a Feb. 3 Tribal Land & Natural Resources Committee meeting that he carried the check to Tribal Treasurer Mason Big Crow. When Big Crow did not agree to cash the check, Dillon said he returned it to someone in his district, who he didn’t name.
The Land & Natural Resources Committee then voted to send the issue to the Finance Committee for action.
The Finance Committee removed LaCreek District Rep. Cora White Horse, from the position of committee chair “due to no confidence” for failing to inform the rest of the committee when she found out about the check’s existence, which she said was Jan. 14.
Pass Creek District Council President Consuelo Means issued a statement saying she “had no knowledge of the check from the Keystone XL Pipeline.” She added, “We never agreed to accept any money from Keystone XL, nor would we ever accept money from them. We, along with others, have supported the water protectors in North Dakota.”
Little Whiteman said acceptance of the check would “hit at those individuals who took the time to travel to the Standing Rock Reservation to help participate in the protests … for fear of contamination if the pipeline breaks, which always happens.”
He said Districts can receive funding for projects such as homes, treatment centers, roads and jobs if they work with officials, “but going against the wishes of our people is not the answer.”
Big Crow issued a statement Feb. 1, declaring, “Currently, the Oglala Sioux Tribal Treasurer and the Oglala Sioux Tribal Council officially does not accept donations from KXL or TransCanada Oil Pipeline Companies.”
Finance Committee Rep. Nakina Mills said the Treasurer’s manual needs to be updated, anyway, to address protocol for handling such checks.
All 1868 Ft. Laramie Treaty tribes and many others have signed multiple resolutions and treaties opposing oil pipeline construction through unceded treaty territory.