Vic Mensa Joins Protestors at Standing Rock: ‘Fight for Freedom’

Vic Mensa has joined protestors at Standing Rock to protest the Dakota Access Pipeline.

Protestors and members of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe in North Dakota have been protesting since late summer against the $3.7 billion pipeline project, which they say would affect its drinking water supply and place downstream communities at risk of contamination from potential oil spills.

“If you’re not in tune with what’s going on here, Standing Rock is an Indian reservation where a major oil company is trying to drill a pipeline underneath the river that supplies drinking water for millions of people on and off of the reservation," Vic Mensa wrote on Instagram. "Drilling that oil pipeline could contaminate the livelihood of so many people, primarily indigenous people of this land that have been systematically destroyed since Europeans arrived in America. Thousands of people have come from all over the world to Standing Rock to stop that pipeline from being drilled and protect the water.”

Standing Rock Sioux Tribal Chairman Dave Archambault told CNN the protest would continue even though protesters have been ordered to vacate an area where they have set up camp by next Monday.  In his Instagram post, Vic Mensa urged protestors to join him on Dec. 5 in defiance of the order.

"If you believe in the inalienable rights of people; the right to clean drinking water, the right to food [and] shelter and the right to freedom then you have to support Standing Rock," he wrote. "Get on a plane, drive, take a bus do whatever you have to do. December 5th the Army Corps has set an ultimatum for the people camped at Standing Rock, saying they will forcibly remove the water protectors. When one of our freedom is on the line all of our freedom is on the line. Fight for freedom."

Of course, Mensa is known for being incredibly outspoken about social justice issues. In late October he released the powerful video for "16 Shots," which directly addressed the police killing of Chicago teen, Laquan McDonald.

Check out his posts urging people to become involved in the resistance at Standing Rock below.