Last week, 2,000 veterans gathered before tribal leaders of the Standing Rock Sioux tribe asking for forgiveness for the crimes committed against the native tribes after the European arrival in the seventeenth century.

The Standing Rock Sioux tribe has been peacefully protesting the construction of the North Dakota Access Pipeline construction due to the desecration of sacred lands and the inherent risk to the reservation’s only water supply, the Missouri river.

According to the ACLU, North Dakota’s government declared a state of emergency and militarized its law enforcement, set up a highway roadblock, called out to the National Guard, started to blast water on the peaceful protesters, shooting them with rubber bullets, and blocking donations of food and health supplies to the people facing the recent harsh winter weather.

“Native people have lost their identity in a lot of ways. That’s why I found this to be such a spiritual awakening. I think it’s more a revolution than a protest. It’s more a cultural or spiritual revolution.” –Chelsea Matiash, a photo editor at Time Magazine Dec. 2, 2016

Media coverage has been lacking, which prevented critical information to be known by the public about what was being done to the protesters.

Army Corps, Col. John W. Henderson stated after December 5th that the protesters camped at camped north of the Cannonball River could be charged with trespassing as most of the land is private property.

Around November 2nd President Obama was criticized for saying, “We are going to let it play out for several more weeks” as the possibility of increased violence on the law enforcement side was imminent.

That possibility was confirmed when the police force blasted water cannons, used tear gas, and shot protesters with rubber bullets, who were trying to remove a barricade of burned out cars around Backwater Bridge on Highway 1806 that prevented access to emergency care.

Police had set up wire and concrete barriers on said bridge, located a mile south of the original plans to drill the pipeline.

President Obama has also controversially called for restraint on both sides when the attacks from the police force on protesters strained tension even further.

Restraint can only be asked for when the person(s) affiliated have threatened or acted on violence prior. The pipeline protesters have been tweeting and posting individually to social media claiming their protest has been peaceful.

The Police force has claimed that the protesters had used bombs and had been inciting violence sporadically however leadership of the protesters had denied this claiming it had been a completely peaceful protest.

A minor victory was made when the The Army Corps of Engineers denied permission for the Dakota Access pipeline to cross under a section of the Missouri River.

The halt is temporary, can be easily changed by the shift of presidency, and Energy Transfer Partners soon made it clear that construction of the DAPL will continue regardless of the Obama Administration’s interference.

Army Corps, Col. John W. Henderson stated after December 5th, the protesters camped north of the Cannonball River could be charged with trespassing as most of the land is private property.

The 2,000 veterans gathered before tribal leaders of the Standing Rock Sioux tribe after discovering the violence the protesters were exposed to.

“We came. We fought you. We took your land. We signed treaties that we broke. We stole minerals from your sacred hills. We blasted the faces of our presidents on your sacred mountain. And we took, still, more land. And then we took your children. And then we tried to take your language. We tried to eliminate your language that God gave you and the creator gave you. We didn’t respect you. We polluted your Earth. We’ve hurt you in so many ways. And we have come to say that we are sorry. We are at your service and we beg for your forgiveness.” – Wes Clark Jr, son of retired general and former presidential candidate Wesley Clark.

The Veterans Stand for Standing Rock’s GoFundMe.com page had raised more than $1 million of its $1.2 million goal. The money is to be used for food, transportation and supplies- major necessities.

Leksi Leonard Crow Dog- a spiritual leader for the American Indian Movement and helped organize the large march of the 1972 Trail of Broken Treaties to Washington D.C- forgave the veteran military members present for the past actions of their government. The response he gave Clark was another apology about the events that happened at what is called The Battle of Big Horn. Sioux soldiers killed approximately 268 U.S. Soldiers that were affiliated with the 7th Cavalry.

The veterans that showed their support and apologized to the Sioux show empathy and grace in their actions. Mutual respect was shown to both parties involved in the discussion. Politicians and critics should take note.