Since sometime in early August, a group of people in Pendleton, Oregon have been demonstrating on Main Street or in front of the Round-Up grounds. The numbers of the people have ranged from 10- over 60. They carry signs and chant in all weather. Even when it gets down 20 degrees and snowing, we are there. This is a lot to say for a town of only 17,000 where Republicans rule in both votes and money.
Why do we brave snow, rain and temperatures? Who do we hope to convince? These are good questions, questions that some of us have asked ourselves. The answer might surprise you. We are water protectors and we have come to the realization that our water, not just here or in Flint or Standing Rock, but all over the world, is in danger. We are here to remind a people who have turned on the faucet in their homes for decades and received clean, potable water, so much so that they have become disconnected from water as a life source.
Without water, there would be no plants, no animals that eat the plants and each other, no people. If the water is polluted, then our food will be polluted. This is the main tenant of our belief. Greed has taken over our world and it is greed that obscures this simple, but essential fact of life.
So we stand, we walk, we chant. We love those who encourage us by honking their horns, waving, etc. Even those who give us the finger- we love you and are here for you to protect your water.
Half the battle is information and we hereby pledge that we will continue to stand for clean water for all of us so that the many will not forget this lesson and be aware that this is not just a fight over personal rights or property rights. Water is life and this is a fight for life. Please join us!