Indigenous Tribes and Major Oil Company Battle over Minnesota Oil Pipeline

Standoff Over Enbridge Line 3

A protracted standoff between a major oil company and northern Indigenous American tribes intensified this week over the construction of a pipeline in Minnesota. Tara Houska, an attorney and founder of the advocacy organization Giniw Collective and a member of the Couchiching First Nation, joins Stephanie Sy from the construction site where the pipeline is being built. This story is just one of many on environmentalists and Native Americans challenging oil companies over land use rights. Read the summary, watch the video and answer the discussion questions below. To read the transcript of the video above, click here.

Discussion Questions: Enbridge Line 3

• Who is protesting Enbridge Line 3?
• What are some of the reasons they don’t want the pipeline replaced?
• Why are some people in favor of the pipeline?
• When and where is the pipeline being placed?
• How will the pipeline impact Native tribes?

Focus Questions: Pursuing A Resolution

1. What do you think is a fair way to work out the disagreement between environmental groups and big business interests?
2. What local, state or federal systems should be in place that might help resolve the conflict?

Media Literacy: In the video, what were some of the forms of media used to help viewers understand and visualize the pipeline? Do you think they were effective? Why or why not? 

Learn More About Enbridge Line 3 and Past Pipline Conflicts

• For an interactive map of the Line 3 Project, click here.
• To learn about previous disagreements around oil pipelines, watch this video.

Republished with permission from PBS NewsHour Extra.