Amnesty International sent delegations to the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation as human rights observers to monitor the response of police to those opposing the Dakota Access Pipeline. Observers witnessed police using excessive force against peaceful human rights defenders, confronting men, women and children.

Under international human rights standards, police should seek to de-escalate tensions and facilitate – not hinder – the right to peaceful protest. Police have instead treated the situation as a battlefield, with military grade armored vehicles, machine guns, surveillance and riot gear.

The people gathered near Standing Rock want to defend the rights of Indigenous people and protect the rights to water and a clean environment. They should not be treated like the enemy.

We need to show the people at Standing Rock that there is overwhelming support for their right to peaceful protest. Sign the petition to add your voice to Amnesty’s, calling on the police to protect the human rights of peaceful activists at Standing Rock.