Text by Kristin Moe, photos by Garth Lenz, for the International League of Conservation Photographers.
On April 22, 2014, the dozen or so leather-booted ranchers mounted their horses and lined up in the midday sun. Facing them were an equal number of American Indians, in the regalia of tribes from across the U.S. The two groups stood still, waiting for the signal. Around them, the crowd cheered, photographers snapped photos, and in the background loomed the dome of the U.S. Capitol.
But this was no showdown. Nor was it – despite the banners that said “No Tar Sands, No KXL” – a protest. This was the opening ceremony of Reject and Protect, a five-day gathering of the Cowboy Indian Alliance: a coalition of tribal members, ranchers, and landowners which over the past forty years has come together again and again to fight industrial incursions onto their land. This time, the fight is over the Keystone XL pipeline. Click HERE to read more---->