People in North Dakota, USA are angry because a company is building a $3.8 billion oil pipeline near their land. The Sioux people have lived on the land for thousands of years. The Sioux are Native Americans. Many protestors want to stop the pipeline because it will dirty drinking water. It will also damage historic Sioux sites. A company from Texas, Energy Transfer Partners, owns the 1,885-km pipeline. It is almost complete.
The protestors call themselves "water protectors". They now include U.S. military veterans (retired soldiers, sailors, etc.). The veterans built shelters to keep people warm in the winter. There has been violence between the protestors and police. A North Dakota spokesman said some of the protestors were "frightening". A veteran said: "We will be unarmed, completely prepared for peaceful protest. We don't even like the word 'protest'."
