Alum Alex Tehrani (BFA Photography 1992) recently went to Standing Rock, North Dakota to support the Lakota Nation in their protest of the installation of the Dakota Access Pipeline, spending a few days at the Oceti camp. He documented his experience in a sprawling Facebook post that has been making the rounds online:
"It was phenomenal to feel connected to what’s going on there, people functioning as a community in all projects big and small, the elders commanding the respect and calling the shots of the movement, not a penny being exchanged as everyone sees to it that all are fed, housed and warmly clothed as the temperatures drop."
After overhearing discussions that the protest was not only for the immediate concerns of the Standing Rock Sioux but for the wellbeing of future generations and the planet, Tehrani decided to bring his children to see the protest firsthand:
"They spent about 30 minutes sizing up the scene which looks about half battered refugee camp and half romantic painting, then dove right in. It was magical to watch … they met 20 new people an hour, were welcomed by all - the Lakota Sioux especially - and made themselves right at home, as little kids do without all the fanfare we adults attach to these things."
For more of Tehrani's story and to see his photographs, click here.
