Dakota Access Pipeline events in Asheville include LaZoom fundraiser, Sunday rally

Jason Sandford

Jason Sandford is a reporter, writer, blogger and photographer interested in all things Asheville.

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Lots of Asheville folks are active in the ongoing fight against the construction of an oil pipeline in North Dakota known as the Dakota Access Pipeline. See three items below about upcoming/ongoing events, and please let me know if you’re aware of anything else going on.

The protest could come to a head on Sunday, when as many as 2,000 veterans gather at the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation in North Dakota to serve as “human shields” for protesters who have for months clashed with the police over the construction of an oil pipeline, according to organizers quoted by the New York Times. The effort has been dubbed Veterans Stand for Standing Rock.

North Dakota’s governor has ordered a mandatory evacuation of the protesters’ camp, but protesters have vowed to remain. Opponents of the 1,170-mile Dakota Access Pipeline have gathered for months at the Oceti Sakowin camp, about 40 miles south of Bismarck, according to the New York Times. The Standing Rock Sioux and other Native American tribes fear the pipeline could pollute the Missouri River and harm sacred cultural lands and tribal burial grounds.

Here’s some of what’s going on. What else is out there?

-LaZoom, the comedy bus tour in Asheville, plans to donate all the proceeds of two special Band and Beer tours to a nonprofit called All Nations Indigenous Center. The tours are 7 p.m. on Thursday, Dec. 1, featuring the music of Sirius B and again at 7 p.m. on Dec. 8 featuring Josh Phillips plus Suzanna Baum, Jacob Baumann and Elijah Cramer. More: “With a small donation, you’ll have an evening of live music, free beer on the bus, and brewery stops. Event sponsored by Highland Brewing Company, Wedge Brewery, Green Man Brewery and Upcountry Brewing Company. Tours are approximately 2 hours long and depart from Tasty Beverage Company – Asheville – 162 Coxe Ave, Asheville, NC 28801. Ticket price is sliding scale between $20 and $50. Tickets are available online here or over the phone at 828-225-6932.

-There’s a rally and prayer ceremony set for 2 p.m. on Sunday, Dec. 4 at Pack Square. The group also plans to “post notices on the banks paying for DAPL (among others TD Bank, Bank of America, Wells Fargo, PNC),” according to the announcement.

-Also, there’s an ongoing effort to get 100 businesses to pledge their support for DAPL protesters by posting a sign in their window and putting out a collection jar. Tyler Garrison of Regeneration Station, and Brandon Jenkins and Mckenzie Ortego have been asking businesses for their support.

I recently sat down with Jenkins and Ortego, who helped deliver supplies to protesters earlier this year. Both said they were passionate about protecting the environment and providing protesters with whatever they need to remain at the site to stop pipeline construction.

“This is about our land being destroyed. People are waking up and coming together, but they need help,” Ortego said.

Jenkins echoed that sentiment, adding that “we’re fighting for our rights to be on this planet.”

Contact Garrison, Jenkins and Ortego at [email protected]. You can also call or mail in your donations to: The Regeneration Station, 26 Glendale Ave, Asheville NC 28803 or call 8285051108. There’s also a crowdfunding campaign going here to raise money to buy supplies for protesters.

-Sanctuary Brewing will host a fundraiser for Standing Rock at 3 p.m. on Dec. 3. The brewery is located at 147 First Avenue East in Hendersonville. The First 100, in collaboration with Sanctuary Brewing Company, is raising money to help send tractor trailer loads of weatherization supplies to the water protectors in Standing Rock. The First 100 is a group of #NoDAPL allies from Asheville who support the fight for clean water, according to a news release. Admission is free to the fundraising event (although there is a suggested $10 donation). Ten percent of all proceeds will go directly to weatherizing the camps at Standing Rock. Raffles will be held to win various items donated by local businesses (you do not have to be present to win) Funds raised will be used to purchase arctic tents, winter clothing, wool blankets, face shields, gas masks, cold weather sleeping supplies (bags, cots, sleeping pads etc.).