Speaker 8: Thank you. Motion. Okay. Motion. Pass around. Good. Thank you. A little slow. Let's go ahead and have our number 15 clerk please read.
Speaker 4: Communication from Councilwoman Gonzalez. Councilmember Pearce Council member, super nor council member. Your UNGA recommendation to request the city attorney to draft a resolution in support of the efforts of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe and their allies opposing the construction of the Dakota Access pipeline.
Speaker 8: Thank you, Councilwoman Gonzalez.
Speaker 2: Yes. Thank you all for being very patient. We appreciate it. And I want to thank my colleagues, especially the colleagues who supported this item, Councilmember Pearce, Councilmember Muranga and Councilmember Supernova. We've all watched the news, of course, over the past couple of months, the Standing Rock, the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe and thousands of people from around the country have joined in protesting the Dakota Access pipeline, which would disturb the tribe's water, fresh water supply and over to over 200 rivers, creeks, tributaries, soil and, of course, sacred land. Tonight, with the passage of this item, we will join with many other cities around the country declaring our support for Standing Rock, including Seattle, Saint Louis and many others, and telling the federal government that protecting sacred ground and maintaining access to clean water is, is and should be the priority over private interests. And I want to be clear. This protest and fight is not just about oil. It is about respect for indigenous communities and respect for the rights of the treaties that were signed with this tribe nearly 150 years ago. Over the weekend, yes. And over the weekend, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers said it would seek alternative routes for the pipeline. And while this is great, certainly it is just a start, but it is not binding at this time. And considering the the approach of the new administration that will take office in a little over a month, we need to ensure that our voice is heard very loud and very clear here in the city of Long Beach. And so I think, again, my colleagues, I hope my other colleagues will come in support. I think the community for coming together on this. I heard loud and clear through Facebook and emails, through many of my council colleagues who are really passionate about this issue. And some people said, well, why are you why do you even care what's happening in North Dakota? Well, we do care. And there's a lot to consider that may or may not and possibly could happen here in our own home. So we have to care about others, don't we? So, again, thank everybody for being here. Appreciate the patience and the time and I hope my colleagues will support. Thank you.
Speaker 8: Thank you, Councilmember Pearce.
Speaker 9: Thank you. Thank you, Councilwoman Gonzalez. And thank you to Sandra Acosta and the rest of the folks who brought forward this resolution and all those that have been active through this. As was mentioned, activists of Standing Rock won a huge victory on Sunday when the Army Corps denied the permit that was needed for the pipeline to undergo dam's selection of the Missouri River called Lake Ahu. And I know I probably butchered that name. I'm sorry. This is the result of thousands of committed activists who braved the North Dakota winter to stand up for their rights, their land and their drinking water. They were met with disproportionate use of force in substandard freezing temperatures, tear gas, rubber bullets and even grenades. Yet they still remained strong. The Obama administration has sent a strong message that any future projects such as this must take into account serious consideration the impacts that it will have on their communities and our environment. Tonight, we're here to celebrate the hard earned victory, but also acknowledge that the fight is not over. With a new administration on the horizon, we must stay vigilant in our support for Standing Sioux Tribe. I ask my colleagues to join me in support of this resolution. It's a first step. It's a right step, and it's a step to say that we are connected, whether we're in Long Beach in California or somewhere else, on the anywhere that we have to stand together and we have to support what's morally right and what's the smart kind of policies to move forward. And again, I thank you all for your courage. And I implore our council to stand with us tonight. Thank you.
Speaker 8: Thank you. Any public comment on this item? Okay. I'm counting. One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17. So here's what I'm going to recommend. We're going to instead of 3 minutes, we're going to go down to 2 minutes. And if you and I encourage you, if someone has said the point already, you don't have to reinforce that point. So we can make sure everyone has an opportunity to speak. So. Madam Clerk, please queue up 2 minutes. Let us know who you are and go ahead and start.
Speaker 4: Thank you. My name is Gloria. R.A. I am a tongva. I am this land, the Los Angeles Basin for the Channel Islands and our center of creation comes out of Long Beach on the campus of Cal State. Long Beach. I have talked to many youth who have returned from Standing Rock, from Southern California, and who have been there. And they are profoundly touched by what they have learned and what they want to give back to the community. They had learned that everybody was so generous and helpful to them as they arrived in anything that they needed. But they also said that it was they learned to test or protect, as they prefer by love, nonviolence and prayer. And they have been met with terrible violence. Many have been very injured. A woman has is fighting to keep her arm. One woman was shot in the eye and is blind in that one eye and they have no weapons whatsoever. Over 2000 vets went out there over this weekend and it was. Very impactful to see that they were that they apologized for what this country has done to the first nation people all across the nation. So I encourage you to support the actions there that they continue in this peaceful, nonviolent, prayerful way. And teaching the young people, the elders are leading it with the youth. The youth actually are the ones that started this whole movement and the elders set what is going to happen each day in these camps. And so we ask you to I ask you to support this. And, you know, I'm very thankful for everything. And I thank you for your votes. And I hope you will really understand what is going out there, as has been explained by Miss Gonzales. Miss Pierce, thank you very much. That was very thorough. Thank you.
Speaker 8: Thank you for your time. Next week, a police.
Speaker 5: He only watched me talk up until I said nope. It shows up at all. Meanwhile, Cody out there to Hawaii where I'm new. How did I march up? Meanwhile, out there to Hawaii, homecoming king guy to hooch, to courage, to wanting you. I greet all of you in my native Dakota language, and I want to thank you for listening to us and Councilwoman Gonzalez, Councilwoman Pierce, for leading this. And I think this is very important. Even though Long Beach is a little bit late to the game. Seattle, Phenix, Oakland, a lot of the Minneapolis, a lot of the major cities already passed a resolution to support Standing Rock. So we urge you to to support Standing Rock. And one of the things that we asked, too, is that if you support Standing Rock, you have to look Long Beach has to look at their own oil addiction, their own. It would be hypocritical for you to pass a resolution to support Standing Rock, but you're benefiting off of oil and fracking, which is destroying our Earth. So if you pass this resolution, that's good and I'll be proud. I'm a resident of Long Beach for the past ten years, and I would be very proud to say my my leaders, this Long Beach leaders pass this. But I would be even more proud if you came back and started making changes here in Long Beach. And it's not about this pipeline. It's about transitioning to renewable energy and keeping fossil fuels in the ground. So that's the bigger picture. And we have the technology to do that. So I urge you to to look at that look at our own history and how it's destroyed our Earth. We want clean water for our children, our young kids here. We want them to have clean water. We want them to have clean air to breathe. So we're looking seven generations ahead. Our great, great grandchildren. What on earth are we going to leave for them? So this is important and it's a human issue, not just an indigenous issue, but a human issue. Thank you for your time, sir. Thank you.
Speaker 8: Next speaker piece.
Speaker 4: Mugabe Libya child with all we have here. Took out Angostura local champ, opium sativa. My dear, relatives always like to thank the creator first. My Lakota name is Bear Woman and I do come from Wounded Knee. I was at Standing Rock on October or November 20th. When they shot rubber bullets and sprayed our people. Once Sophia's arm. When she was hurt. And Vanessa, we call her blue corn. When her eye was shot out. Those were very hard things to deal with. They're still hard because for my fiancee and I, we knew Vanessa personally. But I came here to to ask the. Will you please support the gray Lakota Nation? In the North Dakota Access pipeline. But as you do. Will you please make an amendment? In a to help in a class action lawsuit against the Dakota Access pipeline for violating treaties in Article six. Clause to it declares treaties are supreme law. 1781. Is the people's constitution. 1880. Ah, no, let me let me rephrase that. 1787 is the people's constitution. 1871 is the corporation constitution. The class action lawsuit will be based on the 1933 bankruptcy of the United States due to the fact they failed to ratify dialog and notify 564 federal recognized tribes regarding this.
Speaker 8: Thank you for your time. We still have a full life and thank you.
Speaker 4: Sorry I took up all your time.
Speaker 8: Thank you. Next speaker, please.
Speaker 3: Hello. My name is No Ramirez. I am Artemis now with the protectors of Earth. Mother, I first want to acknowledge the Tongva whose land we are living on. And I hope that we are treating this land with respect and with dignity. I am here today to acknowledge and to commend the city of lives for moving forward with this agenda and support of Standing Rock. But I feel that now more than ever. This is the statement that is about to be given or hopefully be given as needed. Given the statement that the Energy Transfer Partners issued that evening, the Army Corps of Engineers ordered when they halted the pipeline, they said, and I quote, ETP is fully committed in ensuring this vital project is brought to completion and fully expect to complete construction of the pipeline without any additional rerouting in and around Lake Oahe. And quote, I urge the city to issue a strong statement of support because it shows that we are doing our part to shut down that which is a threat to our native land and earth mother in general. And it shows that we as a collective can do our part to avert other pipeline and mining operations. Thank you to my thoughts committee.
Speaker 8: Thank you. Next speaker, please.
Speaker 9: Hi. Good evening. Council members and staff. My name is Tiffany Chan, representing Green Long Beach. I'm here today to encourage you all to support this resolution and to draft a strong statement in support of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe. Green Long Beach represents and works in each and every district to bring together community members in becoming conscious caretakers of the Earth. And our membership believes that the Standing Rock Sioux tribe, the water protectors in North Dakota and their allies are acting on behalf of the entire nation to ensure the safety and quality of the environment that supports us all. And as we said earlier, despite the denial of the permit, the Energy Transfer Partners declared the termination to construct it without any changes. And if constructed as planned, the Dakota Access pipeline will burst and contaminate the drinking water of over 18 million people while violating federal treaties with sovereign nations. We resolve resolutely oppose this shortsighted and dangerous greed and all actions that threaten the lives and livelihoods of our fellow human beings and the Earth. We are seeing accounts of pipelines bursting nearly every month in the United States alone. And the numbers of green Long Beach stand firmly with the Standing Rock Sioux tribe and their actions against the construction of the pipeline and our ongoing dependance on oil. We trust that the council members can understand this long term rather vacations of oil dependency at the cost of human life and environmental health. Thank you.
Speaker 8: Thank you. Next week, Mexican police.
Speaker 5: Good evening. My name is Kobe Sky. I am a principal engineer with the County of Los Angeles, also very proud to serve on the Sustainable City Commission. And I'm here to speak in support of this item, but also to draw an important connection with two other items that are on the agenda tonight. The first is the item passed earlier that laid out the strategic plan for the Sustainable City Commission and some of the priorities that we were presenting on behalf of the Commission and the residents that we heard from about the future of Long Beach and how to make it more sustainable. And the second is a report that's going to be requested regarding oil and gas operations in the city. Standing Rock is about three key issues indigenous rights and how they're being trampled. Protection of water and climate change. And there are things that the City of Long Beach can do to address those things that would add more meaning and impact to the resolution that you're considering tonight. For example, we were recommending, based on feedback we received to move towards 100% renewable energy, that's going to reduce our reliance on oil and gas. It's going to reduce the impacts that we have. And not just in extracting oil, which is potentially impacting our water, but also the role that we have in facilitating the transport and sale of fossil fuels of all type, which impacts people from not just the US but even from other countries. So we need to address the roles that we have in addressing all of those issues. We can take a resolution supporting the transition from Columbus Day to Indigenous Peoples Day, for example. It sends a message that we want to address all of these issues climate change and indigenous rights and water protection. And there's a lot we can do locally to do that. Thank you very much. Thank you for your time.
Speaker 8: Next speaker, please.
Speaker 4: Good evening, everyone. My name is Becky Sanchez. I'm a resident of Long Beach for the last.
Speaker 2: 13 years, and I'm also Long Beach Unified School District teacher. I wanted to say that I was also there on November 20th night where the violence happened that finally made mainstream media airwaves. And I wanted.
Speaker 4: To let you know that I was not there for violence. I went there to help.
Speaker 2: With the many with Tony School, the children who were there in camp.
Speaker 4: The youngest water protectors who were there.
Speaker 2: I went to help those kids because more than anything, this is definitely about respecting sovereignty. This is definitely about protecting our water. This is definitely about protecting Mother Earth.
Speaker 4: But more than anything.
Speaker 2: It's about protecting our children. Because in the end, they were the one.
Speaker 1: They will be the ones to feel the brunt.
Speaker 2: If DAPL proceed.
Speaker 4: To continue with this project.
Speaker 2: Someone earlier said that this that maybe Long Beach is coming in late. I see. We're coming in at the most crucial time.
Speaker 1: We have the support of Obama, but when.
Speaker 2: Trump comes in, there's no telling what's going to happen. So it warms my heart to know that this city that I love has representatives.
Speaker 4: Here even.
Speaker 1: Bringing this to the table.
Speaker 2: Asking our.
Speaker 1: City to support the first.
Speaker 2: Americans, asking our country to stand up to what the Constitution says is the supreme law of the land. I had nothing, but thanks for you taking the time to consider this, to hear us out and hear the cries of people across the country and.
Speaker 1: Around the.
Speaker 2: World that I met at Standing Rock asking for the same thing.
Speaker 4: Please protect our water. Thank you.
Speaker 8: Thank you. Next speaker, please.
Speaker 4: Yeah. It's on us. We're showing Phenix and your show. So what did you, me and Sloan and then paper shushing. I said, Hello, everybody. I welcome you with open heart and open mind. I am Cheyenne Phenix. I am a member of the Navajo Nation as well as the Northern Paiute Nation. I am also a resident here of Long Beach City and I attend Long Beach City College for the past two years. I sit on the associate student body or the student body government of Long Beach City College as a legacy cultural affairs chair. And I also am a part of a club called the Native American Student Association, which started last year. And as a leader within my community in L.A., Long Beach community, I stand with Standing Rock. And I have been doing my part in promoting awareness about this critical issue that as a youth perspective, I am very critical about this issue because as a human being as well as we all are human beings, we need water, we need life, and we don't need oil. There are other energy sources out there that are much cleaner than this. I also ask and support the idea of looking at clean, renewable energies for Long Beach because our lives depend on it. Our very lives depend on our clean water or clean oil, our clean water and air here, as well as protecting the sovereign rights of our indigenous people as well as everybody else's rights as human beings are human and civil rights that we have here. Thank you again.
Speaker 8: Thank you for your time. Next speaker, please.
Speaker 1: And a little taller. Good evening. My name is Natalie O'Neill. I am a.
Speaker 4: Member of the Nikko the Nation. I want to thank Councilwoman Gonzalez and Pierce for their eloquent description of how this impacts the sovereign rights of my ancestors were actually at the sign the Treaty of Fort Laramie in.
Speaker 1: 1851 for this new nation.
Speaker 4: My uncle ran his horses. Thunder was a former chairman of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe. So this movement directly affects me.
Speaker 1: I'm a proud member.
Speaker 2: Of the alumni.
Speaker 4: Of Cal State, Long Beach. And so from a personal perspective, having my uncle and my aunt arrested on October 24th for doing nothing more than praying, praying for the young.
Speaker 2: Men and women that were in the.
Speaker 1: Front lines. It affects you personally. It affected us so much. And my husband and I both have successful careers.
Speaker 4: Took our time to go out there to Standing Rock.
Speaker 1: To visit our home. My home lands.
Speaker 2: Which are only a couple hundred.
Speaker 4: Miles up from the Missouri River to.
Speaker 2: See my uncle's ranch.
Speaker 4: Right is just right on the Lake Oahu and see what the potential danger that could.
Speaker 1: Happen if a pipe like that broke, to see the peacefulness that all the people that were there.
Speaker 4: At the camp.
Speaker 1: Were embodying and embracing of people of.
Speaker 2: All nations. And I think a city like Long Beach had always.
Speaker 4: Has historically embraced diversity.
Speaker 2: This type of resolution is absolutely in line.
Speaker 1: With the culture here, in line with what I feel like.
Speaker 4: The vision of the city is, and for it to continue to be a leader.
Speaker 1: Of not.
Speaker 2: Only in California, but also nationwide and worldwide in support of.
Speaker 1: The Standing Rock Nation. So I thank you for your time and I thank you for hearing us out.
Speaker 8: Thank you. Next speaker, please.
Speaker 11: Let's look at Liam at the chimney maker. My name is Mr. Susheela Aguilera. I'm 18 years old and I'm a student at Cal State Long Beach. I am also a descendant of the Mexica people from Mexico and the Tongva people from here. I'm coming to you today, not as a as an indigenous person, not as a student within your city. But I come to you as a human being. A human being who? My language, my ancient languages were taken from me. My lands were taken from me. The last thing I have left is my water. Last thing I have left of my resources. The last thing I have left is my life. Thank you for supporting the Standing Rock Sioux in North Dakota, but I ask that you also support the younger people from here. I ask that you support the indigenous people from here. I ask that you support the next seven generations of indigenous children who grew up here in Long Beach. I want to be able to take my children to the beach. I want to be able to bring them out into the light. I want to be able to bring them to parks without worrying. Well, maybe emissions will hurt my child. Hurt my child. Or maybe the water from Long Beach is so polluted that they can't even play water. I was in a history class in which a history professor claimed that American Indians do not exist, that we just came from Asia. And he attributed the Bering Strait theory as a fact. And what I heard there basically was that I have no right I have no right to fight for my water. I have no right to fight for my land. But the truth is, I do. And I ask you to do the same. Thank you, Jim.
Speaker 8: Thank you for your time. Next speaker, please.
Speaker 3: Good evening, Honorable City Council. And also special recognition to the Tongva people and other native peoples who are here today. My name is Alex Montana. I live in the sixth district and I'm with the Filipino Migrant Center and the National Alliance for Filipino Concerns. On Thanksgiving weekend, I was part of a six person delegation from Long Beach that drove over 1500 miles to stand with the Standing Rock Sioux and other water protectors against the Dakota Access pipeline in North Dakota. We drove for almost 24 hours.
Speaker 5: In a packed car.
Speaker 3: Full of donations and blankets and clothing and prayers and messages of love from Long Beach residents to be donated to the.
Speaker 5: Standing Rock Sioux. But the most.
Speaker 3: Extraordinary part was witnessing the Standing Rock Sioux and other water protectors united to protect what should.
Speaker 6: Be sacred to all of.
Speaker 3: Us water, land and our Mother Earth. We learned a lot that weekend. We were freezing cold, but we felt warm watching the native dancers and elders gather in front of the sacred fire in the camp. We often forget about native women in our society, but it was the Native women who were on the front lines that weekend who led a women's march onto the bridge and faced a wall of police and barbed wire to chant, sing and declare that water is sacred and that women are sacred. We are often told that we need money to survive. But at the camp, the donation center, the mess hall, the medic tents, everyone was welcome to get free health care, a hot meal and borrowed clothing and blankets. We all survived and took care of each other. I met one Native American artist named Steve Whitehill from the Oneida Tribe who said this was the first time in history that almost all of the Native American tribes are united together to protect what is sacred to them water, land and Mother Earth. And that's why I urge City Council to pass this resolution to support Standing Rock and their struggle to protect the water and the land. Thank you.
Speaker 8: Thank you. Next speaker, please.
Speaker 2: Hello. My name is Erin. Erin Foley. I reside in the first district. I want to thank my councilperson as well as Councilwoman Pierce. I'm sorry, my friend Janine. I'm a co-founder of a local community organization called the Friendship Neighborhood and a member of the Long Beach Time Exchange, among several other Long Beach community based organizations that seek to make our city one that works for all. I love this city that I've called home for the past decade and appreciate having the chance to speak to you. Now, I would like to urge you to pass the resolution in support of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe, despite there being basically a media blackout, this historic fight to protect the water source of the Sioux has invigorated indigenous rights movements, environmental movements and progressive movements across the world. Put simply and straightforward. Pipelines leak, water is life and you can't drink oil. Long Beach should stand on the right side of history. By adopting this resolution, we must show that we to see the injustice of moving a pipeline originally set for the white city of Bismarck to the sacred lands of the Sioux. I urge us all to recognize the white privilege that came into play upon the changing of the pipeline designation. In such a way, I can't change history and neither can you. But we can acknowledge the wrongs that have been done to the native peoples, by the colonizers, the stealing of land, the terrible genocide, as well as the continued suffering wrought by both historic and current traumas. We can choose to lead and do all we can to not continue on that path of destruction. And with this examination of white privilege and our desire as a city to lead with progressive, proactive policies, I urge us to also examine them in the context of our own addiction to unsustainable fossil fuels. Urge you to consider the environmental racism prevailing in our own city. What are we doing to move as a city to sustainable, renewable sources? What are we doing to eradicate environmental racism? There are so many sustainable alternatives and we are a city full of innovative creatives and talented entrepreneurs. We might not be able to end oil right this very second, but we must strive to meaningfully divorce ourselves from it immediately. I know we can if we want to. So in summary, no more pipelines, no more enslavement to oil. And tonight, let us stand as a city in solidarity with the Sioux.
Speaker 8: Thank you so much. Next speaker, please.
Speaker 3: Good evening. Council members and vice mayor. My name is James Swayze. I'm a third district resident and I'm here tonight. This is a very personal issue for me, but also on behalf of our building of the community's Long Beach Steering Committee. And here, just to echo the amazing comments that were made here tonight, but also to offer another perspective and I know you all do the right thing and vote for this tonight, but offering and reminding you that actions speak louder than words. Right? When we think about the health impacts, then we talk a lot about what happens in the Latino, the African American and the Cambodian community. But often we don't talk about the Native American community here and the large health disparities, the large health inequities that not just in Long Beach, but in communities across the nation and particularly in California. When we look at cities like Del Norte in Kern, in Coachella Valley, where a lot of the native community doesn't even have access to fresh cleaning water. So fresh, clean water. Right. So there's a lot that we can do. And I think a lot of my community members out here have also made those echoes and calls for action and for us to really look at how do we localize this and how do we move forward on actually achieving health equity because actions like this achieve that and get to that conversation where we can lift up the health and safety of everybody. So thank you very much time.
Speaker 8: Thank you. Next speaker, please.
Speaker 3: Good evening, Vice Mayor Councilmembers My name is Gerald Mangino. My address, 4301 Boyer Avenue, Long Beach. But I am a citizen of this earth. I come here tonight. Obviously, I'm a white man. I have no no Indian blood in me, no, no Native American in me. But I do represent a group of scouts and we've been around for over 90 years. And what we've taught our boys is.
Speaker 7: They grew.
Speaker 3: To men, was respect of others in respect of the earth.
Speaker 7: We study the.
Speaker 3: Ways, the laws and the customs of the Native American, because that's the prime example. Before I read something I want to finish with, I want to just say here's a little history on the Dakota Access pipeline. The pipeline was moved from its original crossing of the Missouri River above the city of Bismarck, North Dakota, when objections were given regarding the potential for environmental impact. If the line leaked and polluted the area's water supply, it was instead moved to the Standing Rock Reservation lands the Lakota have occupied the this land for the Lakota have been there forever. They've been there for our history. It's been their land since we decided to give it to them in terms of our treaty. We acknowledge that they belong there and that they can have those lands and then we take them away, as we've done over 500 times. The pipeline's path was moved down Missouri River to the river crossing on the top of the tribal lands. It was done so because there is a lower population concentration. The Standing Rock tribe, that area and a lesser political financial influence on.
Speaker 8: Well, thank you for your time. We still have a number of people speak. Thank you so much.
Speaker 3: Thank you. And thank you for your guide tonight.
Speaker 8: All right. Next speaker, please.
Speaker 1: Good evening.
Speaker 4: Counsel. My name is Anna Kristensen. Born here. Raised here. Still here.
Speaker 10: I.
Speaker 4: My daughter is at Standing Rock tonight. She's. It's her birthday. Her birthday present was a gas mask. I never thought I'd have to buy my daughter a gas mask for her birthday. I'm not doing very well emotionally. It's funny you feel good about the last decision, and then you talk to somebody from the National Office of Historic Preservation who said no. They didn't really deny it. They just pushed it further down the line. They they and I said, Are you telling me that they she said, because they were afraid of getting sued. So they're not. I said, Are you telling me they weren't afraid of getting sued by the tribe, but they are by the oil company? And she said, that's right. So. So Standing Rock really is as. As the keeper of the white buffalo. Pipe said everywhere. And it doesn't really matter what race we are. It does matter if we listen. To our elders. And he also said that the term Mother Earth is not. Symbolic. Gentlemen, please. It isn't a euphemism. It isn't. It is our mother. She is our mother. She is not a resource. She is the source. And I'm glad to see the full council is here. Almost the full council. I hope you vote in favor of this. But if you do, we'll be back. We'll be back when you have a vote on the Lo Cerritos Wetlands, a project that will allow 120 new wells to be built, built, built on an active earthquake fault in our wetlands, destroying our pristine wetlands forever. We will be back.
Speaker 3: Thank you. Next speaker, please. Thank you. Council. Hello, Mr. Mayor. Tony Taylor, investigative journalist, poet and songwriter. I'm going to take off a political hat. This is not a political speech at all. Nonpartisan. It's about building empathy. For all people who are oppressed, no matter black, white, whoever we are, especially indigenous right now. And this is something from Stephen Grumet. And his classic book, American Place Names where the New York Metropolitan Museum now sits. Steven Grumet About building empathy. Young children bound in small cradle boards were stuck pierced in a manner to move a heart of stone. Other pieces were cut off and thrown into the fire. So other pieces were cut off and thrown into the river. So when? Parents of the tortured child or children went into the river to save the young children. The parents were trying to do this. The soldiers would not let the parents come up onto dry land, making both parents and children drown. That was the murder of peaceful Algonquin Indians.
Speaker 5: In what's now known as upstate New York.
Speaker 3: So when we know about these stories, whether they're the genocide of Native Americans, African-Americans, Jewish Holocaust, any Holocaust throughout history, it helps us to identify with people not from a cerebral point, but more from a spiritual, emotional point, not a Republican political point, Democrat point, but a human point. So I just wanted to bring that out so we can see it more from. What Marvin Gaye said, keep a tear in your heart for humanity. And that's my point. Okay. Thank you, sir. Next speaker, please.
Speaker 0: Yeah. I thought I shouldn't be gay in here. Not quite an initial. I can't onyebuchi the agenda. Straight out, another awkward egg on that Latin initial. Hello, everyone. My name's Ewa. I've lived here since August 2011. I love Long Beach, but if someone to tell you that I'm also a member of the Navajo Nation and I don't know if you guys know about the, um, the mine spill that happened in Arizona. Although it's not an oil spill, it was. It still affected water source. Many people think I just affected the water. And then it had long term effects on other things. One of the things that I had affect on is agriculture. We need food, like we need water. And the Navajo Nation, a lot of Navajo farmers had to temporarily close off their water supply because they got it from the San Juan River. Um. I also noticed that we also have a similar situation where water is in jeopardy in Flint, Michigan. They don't really have access to clean water as well. I think it's easy to sit here and think that Standing Rock is an isolated incident away from us when it's not. Just a while ago, I saw Councilwoman Susie Price drink something, obviously, that had water in it, correct? Yeah, I had water in it. So it doesn't matter what profession you are, what your career is, who you are, your statuses. We all need water. It doesn't matter if you're an archeologist. It doesn't matter if you're a doctor. It doesn't matter if you're a council person. We all need water. So I just wanted to reiterate that fact, and I hope you support this talk in its air, water as life. Thank you.
Speaker 3: Thank you. Next speaker, please.
Speaker 2: Hello. My name is Julianne Yolande Gael. I'm a resident of Long Beach. I am not native. I am Ashkenazi Jewish and Han Chinese heritage. And I'm also a construction worker. And I just spent the last three weeks in Standing Rock because as a non-native construction worker, I believe that we need to be building community. We need to be supporting treaties and native rights. And we we need to be building renewable energy. And we can do all of those things. And we do not need to be building pipelines that violate sacred rights. And I was there on Sunday, November 20th. I got to. Be out there in in subfreezing temperatures as water cannons were being shot at us. And for people living in tents below freezing, that that's pretty much a death sentence. If we didn't have the the medics and the healers to support all the people. One of the people in my camp was handing out hand warmers when she was shot multiple times with a water cannon. People in my camp were shot point blank with rubber bullets. For praying, people in my camp were arrested on their knees, hands in the air, praying, and then put in dog kennels with numbers written on their arms. And even with all of that, the core Lakota value of generosity and. And that spirit was present. Just a few days later, the International Indigenous Youth Council saw that the Morton Sheriff County, the, the main law enforcement there, even though they had just received $10 million in loans to continue hurting and oppressing, these people, had put out a request about how they need donations for hand warmers and all of that. And the Indigenous Youth Council said, okay, we are generous, we will fulfill every single thing on your donation list. So this is the kind of nonviolence and spiritual generosity that we can support as as Long Beach. And I hope you will support this resolution. Thank you.
Speaker 3: Thank you. Next speaker, please. Looks like this is our final speaker. We'll close the speakers list, so please.
Speaker 4: Thank you. I'm Patricia Chen with Long Beach 350. And I just want to say that I'm very much humbled by the speakers that went before me. Long Beach, 350, supports the proposed resolution for Standing Rock. We would very much like to see oil and gas left in the ground so that there would be no need for pipelines that threaten water supplies and degrades sacred burial grounds and no need for fighting dogs and water cannons and freezing weather. Here in Long Beach. We can do more than just a resolution. Um, under item 16, I'll talk about oil and gas operations, but at this moment, I just want to speak about, um, the opportunity to change Columbus Day to Indigenous Peoples Day. This is an important step forward that we can take in recognition of the importance of our First Nations. Hopefully, it will lead to more and greater steps reflecting greater respect for indigenous peoples and lands. Thank you.
Speaker 3: Thank you so much. Going to bring this back behind the the council. So council member super now.
Speaker 5: I'd just like to thank all the supporters for being here tonight, and especially to the speakers. I'd also like to recognize someone who didn't speak tonight. That's Craig Stone from Cal State, Long Beach, right here in the front row, and also to Jake Heflin from the Long Beach Fire Department who could not be here tonight. I think he's teaching a certain class. But for those who don't know. Last month, city council for the very first time celebrated Native Heritage Month. And Jake and Craig were instrumental in putting that together and moving forward. The three of us are working on a new project and I will be bringing to council in the very near future a proposal to create a native heritage commission for the city of Long Beach. Thank you.
Speaker 9: Councilmember Pearce I just wanted to close with just a very big thank you gratitude for coming and sharing your stories and your travels. I think it's really important that we continue to hear those, not just at times when we have something on council. And so I implore you guys to work with our history departments, at our colleges, with the society here, the association, and continue to share those stories. So and also, don't worry, there'll be there'll be items coming down the road. Okay, guys. Thank you, everybody.
Speaker 3: Thank you. I know I wasn't able to join much of the conversation. I just want to say something briefly for those that I did hear. They had a chance to hear that we're here. I want to thank you. If you were over at Standing Rock and you had a chance to participate in really incredible show of strength and support. I've been following it pretty closely. I've been pretty vocal on social media and in other venues about my support, of course, for the native people there and for the work that was happening. And while I think the Army Corps and the President obviously did did the right thing, all of the credit really goes to the Native people and all the supporters and the water protectors and everyone that did such a great, really outstanding job over there. And so so thank you. Thank you for those that were out there. Thank you. Those that are here in solidarity to all of your other brothers and sisters, this is was a really important issue that I think brought a lot of awareness also, I think, across the country, which was really great to see. And so I appreciate this and I appreciate Councilwoman Pierce, who had mentioned to me she was bringing this forward. I'm a strong supporter of this resolution. I think it's the right thing for the city to do. So thank you. And with that members, please cast your vote.
Speaker 4: Motion carries.
Speaker 3: Great names. Congratulations. We're going to have just had a request to quickly hear item 19 and then we're going to go to 14.
Recommendation to request City Attorney to draft a resolution including but not limited to the draft language provided in support of the efforts of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe and their allies opposing the construction of the Dakota Access Pipeline.