‘United States Is Still A Colony’: Interview With Jacqueline Keeler On Dakota Access Pipeline

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Hosts Rania Khalek and Kevin Gosztola are joined by Jacqueline Keeler, a Diné/Ihanktonwan writer, is our guest this week. She is the author of “Edge of Morning: Native Voices Speak for the Bears Ears.” Her work has been published by The Nation, Yes! Magazine, and other publications.

Keeler talks with us about the U.S. government’s decision to recommit itself to the Dakota Access Pipeline Project. She describes what can be done to fight the project and show solidarity with indigenous people. But she also goes deeper in her analysis and highlights the centuries-long history of America as a settler colonial state and how that remains true today.

“The United States is still a colony. It’s a colony without portfolio. It doesn’t have a homeland. It broke away from Great Britain, its actual homeland, but it doesn’t have a homeland. Its lands are basically made up of other people’s homelands, other nations,” Keeler declares, in confronting North Dakota’s use of military force against indigenous people fighting the pipeline.

In a separately posted discussion, the hosts talk about the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids, President Donald Trump’s crime executive orders, Senator Joe Manchin, the only Democrat to vote for Attorney General Jeff Sessions, David Frum’s advice for “effective protest,” and the CIA giving a Saudi prince an award for fighting terrorism.

To listen to the interview with Keeler, go here. The episode can also be downloaded from iTunes. Or click on the player at the top of the post to listen to the interview.

For the discussion segment, go here.