Indigenous Peoples and Human Rights

February 9, 2017

Censored News -- Censored by Twitter -- What Twitter Doesn't Want You to Know


Censored News coverage of Standing Rock Water Protectors attacked by militarized police and Morton County Sheriff.
Censored Again, So What Else is New? This.

By Brenda Norrell
Censored News

Back in September, Twitter began censoring the news links of Censored News -- all of them. This came as Censored News reported on the violent attacks on Standing Rock Water Protectors by militarized police and the Morton County Sheriff in North Dakota.
Among the most controversial posts, was the identity of retired Bismarck police officers and mercenaries responsible for the attack on water protectors. These Dakota Access Pipeline security guards sicced vicious dogs on women and children. Water protectors were attempting to protect burial places from the bulldozers of Dakota Access Pipeline.
This was the headline just 11 days before Twitter began censoring our links.



.

We took a stroll back through our Tweets to September 19, 2016, when Twitter first blocked our Tweets to find out the offenders, to discover what Twitter really didn't want you to know.
First on the list of blocked links was this one: "Obama and the courts did not stop the Dakota Access Pipeline."
http://bsnorrell.blogspot.com/2016/09/obama-and-courts-did-not-stop-dakota.html
That came as Obama's smooth-talking public relations experts were fooling people about the drilling permit.
The next Tweet and link censored by Twitter was a message from the Zapatistas, "One House, Other Worlds."
http://bsnorrell.blogspot.com/2016/09/zapatistas-one-house-other-worlds.html
Next on Twitter's forbidden list was this link, "Oceti Sakowin Human Rights Observers, Consultation and Free, Prior and Informed Consent."
http://bsnorrell.blogspot.com/2016/09/oceti-sakowin-camp-human-rights.html
So, we kept tweeting, not that Twitter really matters in the big scheme of things. 
The next one axed by Twitter was this:
"Free Lakota Grandmother Olowan, Noise War Demo War Cry, No DAPL."
http://bsnorrell.blogspot.com/2016/09/free-lakota-grandmother-olowan-war-cry.html
Censored News continued our coverage. In the months that followed the censorship by Twitter, militarized police brutalized water protectors. Hundreds were arrested. Native American elderly in ceremony were strip searched and jailed in dog kennels, with numbers written on their arms as was done by Nazis, by Morton County.
Standing Rock water protectors were tear-gassed, shot with rubber bullets, shot with water cannons in freezing temperatures, beaten and seriously injured by militarized police.
Now, we wonder, why would Twitter censor these news links, especially when you consider the bizarre links Twitter allows posted. We've asked Twitter and received no response. 
We manage to post sometimes on Twitter by fooling the blocker using a Tiny URL.
Just ten days before Twitter began censoring our links, we posted this headline: "Red Warrior Camp urges world to come and push back National Guard."



http://bsnorrell.blogspot.com/2016/09/red-warrior-camp-urges-world-to-come.html

The world is being awakened by the non-violent resistance of Standing Rock water protectors, who locked down, and stood in prayer as they were tear-gassed, and shot with rubber bullets, and water cannons in freezing temperatures.
The news circulated around the world from Censored News, with translators in Dutch in Belgium, and French in France. Alice Holemans and Christine Prat distributed the news in English, Dutch and French throughout Europe and no doubt had an impact on the bank divestments from Dakota Access Pipeline in Europe.
Twitter did not stop the news, it only led to questions.
Why was Censored News censored? Who owns and controls Twitter? Who made the request to block the links of Censored News?
Our coverage of Standing Rock, and beyond, continues.
Late yesterday, the Army Corps of Engineers gave the final approval for Dakota Access Pipeline to drill a crude oil pipeline beneath Lake Oahe, endangering the water source of millions who depend on the Missouri River for their drinking water.
Trump is also pushing for the revitalization of the Keystone XL Pipeline, which will endanger water sources throughout the heart of America, and rip family farm owners from their land with eminent domain land seizures for the pipeline.
The illegal and inhumane brutalization of water protectors, and the disregard for the air, water and earth, and its peoples, which began during the Obama administration, and continues during the Trump administration, remains in the forefront for truth-tellers.

Censored News was created in 2006 when Brenda Norrell was censored and terminated by Indian Country Today, where she served as a staff reporter for most of the years since 1995. Norrell first served as a reporter at Navajo Times, during the 18 years that she lived on the Navajo Nation, and as a stringer for AP and USA Today. Over the past decade, Norrell has traveled with the Zapatistas, and to Bolivia and throughout the West to provide live coverage for Censored News. She has been a reporter in Indian country for 35 years. She has been blacklisted by the mainstream media for 10 and one-half years. Censored News has no grants, revenues or sponsors.

brendanorrell@gmail.com





No comments: