2021

As governments and corporations struggle to address the mounting global climate crisis, grassroots activists around the world are taking it upon themselves to oppose extractive industries that they claim plunder the environment and infringe upon the rights and livelihood of marginalized communities. One such frontline community is the Anishinaabe-led water protectors of northern Minnesota, who have spent years opposing construction of the Enbridge Line 3 oil pipeline.

Critics assert that potential oil and chemicals spills from the pipeline threaten Indigenous territorial lands, hundreds of pristine waterways and forests, and the integrity of the great Mississippi River, a fresh water source for roughly 20 million people. Between December 2020 and October 2021, over 800 peaceful protesters were cited or arrested, often violently, while taking direct action against construction.

“Black Snake” documents some of the people leading this struggle as well as the land and water they fight to protect.