Phyllis Young

Phyllis Young, also known as Woman Who Stands by the Water, and Woman Who Loves the Water, is an American Indian (Lakota/Dakota) activist who has been active in her community for over 40 years. She played an important role in organizations like The American Indian Movement (AIM) and as a founding member of the Women of All Red Nations (WARN). Between 1993 and 2008 Young served on the board of the National Museum of the American Indian, and in 1977 she helped coordinate the first conference on Indians in the Americas by the United Nations in Geneva, Switzerland. She is most widely known for her leadership role in the anti-Dakota Access Pipeline struggle in 2016 and 2017.

Standing Rock Reservation

Phyllis Young was born on February 24, 1949 on the Standing Rock Reservation, which lies on the border of North and South Dakota. The Standing Rock Indian Reservation is mainly controlled by the Sioux Nation, who were driven out of their homes due to westward expansion in the 1800's. Before being placed into the Standing Rock reservation, the Sioux resided to the east side of the Missouri River. In violation of the Fort Laramie Treaty, American soldiers marched into the Black Hills, sacred land to the Sioux Native Americans, the Sioux refused to leave or sell their land, leading to violence and battles between the Sioux and American Settlers. The conflict raged on for years but ultimately led to the surrender of the Native Americans and their placement into the Standing Rock reservation. With the goal of assimilating, the US government forced children into boarding schools in more urban areas of the country, like Chicago, Seattle, Los Angeles, and Cleveland.

Native American Urban Relocation

When Young was elementary age, she was put into Native American Urban Relocation, a program that attempted to assimilate Native Americans into mainstream American culture and society. Young witnessed culture stripping to an extreme degree in the Native American Urban Relocation program. Young took note of what the government was doing to her people and used it to motivate her in her work with the Women of All Red Nations and the American Indian Movement. Young lived in Los Angeles for a short time but eventually moved back to the Standing Rock reservation, where she started schooling. When Young was in third grade, she attended a boarding school called Fort Yates, a government school just north of the Standing Rock Reservation. The boarding schools, similarly to the Native American relocation program, forcibly assimilated Native American children into American society.

The Start of Boarding Schools

The assimilation of Native Americans began in 1819, when Congress passed the Civilization Fund Act. The act enforced the ”civilization process” that spanned over 100 years. This prompted the creation of Native American boarding schools. Approximately, 357 boarding schools were operated across 30 states across the country. These reservations housed around 60,000 American Indian children. Native American assimilation began in 1860 after on-reservation boarding schools were established. Attendance at these boarding schools was mandatory, regardless of parental consent. Once arriving at these boarding schools, Native American children were given Anglo-American names, military style clothes, and boys would be forced to shave their heads. These programs tended to use the young Native Americans for domestic and manual labor. Boarding schools proved to be a major part in the assimilation of Native Americans and Young' early life. Young was one of the few Native American children that strived to remain connected with her culture and people.

Culture and Connection to the Land

Phyllis Young grew up on the Standing Rock Reservation during the 1950’s. Her family's resources of food and water came along the Missouri River and what her family could grow in the fertile lands. When Young was 10 years old the US Army Corp of Engineers built the Oahe Dam. The Oahe Dam was built to control the water flow and generate electricity. The dam's construction began in 1948 and was finished August 3, 1958. The dam flooded her family's land, destroying her family's resources and home. The Cheyenne River Tribe would eventually file a lawsuit against the Army Corp after several instances of flooding, claiming that the floods were caused by the Oahe Dam. The Oceti Sakowin people, also known as Sioux were the people that resided in the lands near the Missouri River. The Oceti Sakowin, which also translates to The Seven Council Fires, are separate nations that followed the ideals and culture of the Sioux. The Seven Council Fires are Mdewakaton- Dwellers by the Sacred Land, the Wahpekute- Shooters among the leaves, Sistonwan/ Sisseton- People of the Marsh, the Wahpetonwan- Dwellers among the Leaves, the Ihanktonwan/Lower Yanktonai, the Inhanktowna/upper Yanktonai- of the Little End, and the Tentonwan- People on the Plains.

The Seven Council Fires represent the beliefs of the three subset groups within the Sioux Nation: Lakota, Nakota and Dakota. The ideals and beliefs of the Sioux Nation hold that everything is connected, the earth to the stars, the sun and the moon, the animals to the people, and the people to the people. The Sioux nation also strongly believes in the preservation of languages, traditions and cultural practices to maintain the identity of the tribe. The Sioux culture also pertains to a strong idea of social responsibility, a duty to care for one another, especially the elderly and children. Recently, the priority of the Sioux have shifted into advocating for the rights of Indigenous people in the decades after forced assimilation and removal of indigenous peoples. Growing up in a Oceti Sakowin community, Young has engaged with traditions and values that have shaped her into the activist she is today. This cultural background has informed her advocacy efforts, particularly in areas related to Indigenous rights and environmental issues.

Education

Phyllis Young's educational journey started when was in 3rd grade, when she attended a Catholic boarding school in Fort Yates, North Dakota. For Young, life as a student in these government-based, religious institutions was the same as it was for many other natives. She had to abide by the rules that were in place such as removal of all cultural norms and customs including her hair, her clothing, and her language, having to abide by the norms of the whites, and the laws under what is right and wrong. If she disobeyed one of the laws, she would be put under serious corporal punishment.

WARN and AIM

Young is a longtime member of the American Indian Movement. AIM was founded in 1968, inspired by similar anti-imperialist groups of the Sixties and Seventies, such as the Black Panthers. The American Indian Movement is perhaps best known for their 71-day occupation of the town of Wounded Knee, South Dakota. One year after Wounded Knee, in 1974, Young, along with Lorelei DeCora Means, Madonna Thunder Hawk, and Janet McCloud, founded the Women of All Red Nations, a partner organization to the American Indian Movement. WARN aimed to fill the gap in women’s leadership, and cement the role of women in the American Indian Movement.

Forced Sterilization

One of the main things Young focused on with WARN was the forced sterilization of Indian women. “Over the six-year period that had followed the passage of the Family Planning Services and Population Research Act of 1970, physicians sterilized perhaps 25% of Native American women of childbearing age, and there is evidence suggesting that the numbers were actually even higher”. Indian women went in for benign procedures, and left infertile. In 1976 the US government admitted that between 1973 and 1976, 3,406 American Indian women were sterilized without their consent and without their knowledge, including 36 women under the age of 21. WARN raised awareness about the government’s sterilization program via their newsletter, through frequent conferences, and with appearances at international events. Extensive advocacy from WARN and other women’s groups led to the government adopting new regulations surrounding sterilization, including a waiting period of up to 30 days between consent and operation.

Mining

Since the mid nineteenth century, Lakota lands have been poached for their mineral resources. Though over a century has passed, corporations are still carrying out mining operations for minerals like gold in the Black Hills, an area sacred to the Lakota people. Besides gold, there are rich uranium deposits in the Black Hills that have attracted many mining operations. Over the decades, almost two hundred uranium mines have been left abandoned in the Black Hills. WARN studies reported the various ailments associated with radiation found in Indian families near uranium mines. In addition to the substantial sterilization among American Indian women, radiation poisoning resulted in many spontaneous abortions and stillbirths. WARN co-founder Lorelei Means declared, “this is genocide”. In 1979, AIM and WARN worked to form the Black Hills Alliance (BHA) – a union between the Lakota, and various white farmers and environmentalists from in and around the Black Hills region. This alliance between notable civil rights organizations and poorer whites wasn’t uncommon, similar groups were formed a decade earlier, such as Fred Hampton’s Rainbow Coalition. Radon in the water not only harms people, but the livestock, which was often the livelihood of both the white farmers and American Indians. The white advocates within the BHA were primarily concerned with water contamination, rather than the sustained genocide of Native Americans. The Black Hills Clean Water Alliance is still active today, focused on all the mining efforts and their contamination of the Black Hills.

Accomplishments

Phyllis Young, a prominent Native American activist and a member of the Standing Rock Sioux tribe, has been an important figure in advocating for indigenous rights. She co-founded the Women of All Red Nations (WARN) in 1974. She also played a key role in the opposition to the Dakota Access Pipeline, drawing international attention to environmental and tribal sovereignty issues. In 1975, Young established the 1st International Indian Treaty Council Office at the UN Plaza. In 1977, she secured the Council’s credentials as an NGO with Special Consultative Status with the UN Economic and Social Council, making it the first Indigenous NGO. Young was one of the authors of the precursor document that became the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous People. This document protects Indigenous people's rights like land, culture, and freedom to govern themselves. In doing so Young provided a voice to indigenous Americans during global discussions, and got the International Indian Treaty Council recognized as an official organization at the UN.

Young has been actively involved for 15 years on the Board of Trustees for the National Museum of the American Indian in Washington D.C., and served one term as Chair of the Board. Throughout her 15 years on the board of trustees, Young has been a key decision-maker on the board of the museum and has dedicated herself to preserving Native American History, culture, and art. Her role guided the museum's direction, ensuring it correctly represented Native American History. Young was a tribal council member at Standing Rock from 2012 to 2015. As a council member, she worked on policies and initiatives that benefited her community, such as advocating for tribal sovereignty and supporting social or economic development. She is currently an organizer for th
Lakota People’s Law Project
a nonprofit law firm led by Attorney Daniel Sheehan providing legal defense to water protectors in the aftermath of the Standing Rock DAPL struggle. In 2018, Young became one of six people to be selected for the 2018 Massachusetts Institute of Technology Solve Fellowship with the Oceti Sakowin. As a Fellow, she was granted $10,000 in funding to put toward her efforts to bring renewable energy to the Standing Rock Reservation. The award itself is a $250,000 no-strings-attached prize which recognizes individuals who engage in responsible, ethical disobedience aimed to challenge norms or laws that sustain social inequality. The award is given to a nominee who took action in a inequality-challenging event. Nonviolence, creativity, courage, and personal responsibility are all norms that need to be displayed while fighting against societal injustices.

A winner of the disobedience award is Mona Hanna; they were awarded the disobedience award for their contributions to environmental justice. Like Mona Hanna, Phyllis Young has also been a very strong advocate for environmental justice, even though they were in different contexts. Mona Hanna gained national recognition for her role in exposing the Flint water crisis, where lead contamination in the city’s water supply harmed the health of its predominantly black low-income residents. Her work highlighted the mix of public health, environmental protection, social inequality, and she became a symbol of holding institutions accountable. Phyllis Young, as a member of the Standing Rock Sioux tribe, was a key figure in the fight against the Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL). She led protests that brought attention to the environmental threat the pipeline poses to the Missouri River, a vital water source for the tribe, while also addressing the indigenous sovereignty rights. Through their accomplishments and leadership, Mona Hanna and Phyllis Young have earned significant recognition for their actions. Hanna won the disobedience award for uncovering the Flint water crisis. Young received an honorable mention for her role in the Standing Rock protests against the Dakota Access Pipeline. Their efforts have been key in raising awareness about environmental justice and the challenges faced by marginalized communities.

Phyllis Young has made significant contributions to both indigenous rights and environmental advocacy throughout her career. As a member of the Standing Rock Sioux tribe, she played an important role in raising awareness about concerns of Native American communities, particularly regarding tribal sovereignty and environmental protection. She was involved in co-founding the International Indian treaty council and with the United Nations declaration on the rights of indigenous peoples. Additionally, her leadership during the opposition to the Dakota Access Pipeline underscored the connection between environmental concerns and indigenous rights, particularly the protection of vital natural resources like water. Recognized with an honorable mention for the disobedience award, Young’s actions reflect her commitment to challenging systems that she and others see as continuity and environmental harm. Her work has contributed to ongoing conversations about the rights of indigenous communities and the importance of environmental sustainability.

Involvement with Standing Rock Protests.

During the 2016 Standing Rock Direct access pipeline protest, Phyllis Young served a role in ensuring the safety and security of the protesters. The Direct Access Pipeline protest, also known online as the hashtag #NoDAPL, started in 2016 after Dakota Access LLC, received permission and started construction on a 1,772 mile long pipeline that would transport crude oil from Bakken, ND to Patoka, IL. Controversy arose soon after the announcement of the pipeline due to the fact it would run through Lake Oahe putting it in danger of an oil spill. Lake Oahe borders the Standing Rock reservation and is the main source of water for the area and its inhabitants, it also serves as a burial site for the native tribes living on the reservation.

Protests began in April 2016 when thousands traveled to set up camp on the land slated for construction. At its height the camp had as many as 10,000 inhabitants. Young served on the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe Council; she served as councilwoman starting in 2012. The council acts as its own sovereign government and has its own constitution that was ratified in 1959. The council oversees everything related to the land, passes their own legislation, and works to help ensure the well-being of its over 15,000 inhabitants. Her experience working on the council aided her during her time on the reservation during the protest. In the fall of 2015, Young began working as the official Tribal Liaison for the Oceti Sakowin camp. Oceti Sakowin translates to “seven council fires” which represents the seven bands of people that make up the tribe. It consists of the Wahpekute, Wahpetunwan, Sisistunwan, Bdwakantunwan, Ihanktonwan, Ihanktonwan, and Titunwan. Nowadays they are more formally referred to as the Sioux Nation. Young’s main job as liaison was to be a direct connection between the Standing Rock tribal council and the protesters, making sure the camp got everything it needed. With this connection, Young’s presence at the camp would be felt daily, ensuring that the thousands that gathered were safe and taken care of. Young handled issues like the camp’s security, and providing Porta-potties and meals to protesters. For 10 months, Phyllis Young and thousands of others camped out to protest the pipeline. In January 2017, the Standing Rock tribal council unanimously voted to ask protesters to leave the site over concerns of river contamination from trash, also citing the harsh upcoming winter weather conditions set to hit the reservation. Following the wishes of the council, a majority of protesters left the encampment. A few stayed until February 23, 2017 when law enforcement entered the camp and forcefully cleared the site of any remaining protesters.

Though this would be the end of the protest, this would not be the end of Young’s fight for environmental or indigenous rights. During the 10 month standoff, hundreds of people would be arrested for their actions related to the protest. Along with the Lakota People's Law Project, Young would help fight legal battles for those arrested during the protest, ensuring they received proper legal defense. Now, the Lakota People’s Law Project is fighting for the reclamation of the indigenous lands and to stop the threats to Lakota culture. Currently, Young runs her hashtag #GreenTheRez initiative alongside Women of All Red Nations Co-Founder, Madonna Thunder Hawk. It's a campaign focused on bringing renewable energy to a standard of 50% to North and South Dakota by 2030. In 1956 the Army Corps of engineers flooded the lands of Standing Rock to create the Oahe Reservoir and a river dam to produce electricity. For compensation in the creation of the reservoir the people of the land were promised free electricity, but the Army Corps would not keep this promise and now the citizens of Standing Rock pay the highest rates for electricity within the states of North and South Dakota, upwards of one thousand dollars a month.

References

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Native American activists
Members of the American Indian Movement
Women Native American leaders
Native American history of South Dakota
Native American history of North Dakota
American environmentalists
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Standing Rock Sioux people
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Year of birth missing (living people)
20th-century Native American women
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21st-century American women
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Native American people from South Dakota
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