is the cause of a sudden the um lien uh not the uh the, the, the team uh by as pacific peoples, we have a deep and secret connection to water. yet all around the pacific communities are on the ground organizing to protect this life, giving source in a fight for our lives. i spent the last year on a journey through the mariana islands. and so i, who, who i, documenting incision is for assistance against us imperialism and protection of

water in their homelands. i spoke with protectors who remind us not only of the deep importance of water for our very survival, but share the we use the water is embedded in our language and life waves. some about to get on the flight to side pan and meet with some of the activism community members to see how they feel about the ways that the most hurry expansion is impacting the region. it's important to note that military expansion that's currently happening. you can see so much of those realities here in guam, but it's, it's not just quantum being impacted. there are just under a 1000000 square nautical miles of ocean that are being used for training exercises by the us military. when i arrived in stipend, connected with members of our comfortable 670, the grassroots community group doing critical work,

drawing attention to military training as part of the mariana islands, training and testing area, or mits, which is close to 834000000 acres of open ocean around the mariana islands and near the hawaii range complex used for military life fire ordinance testing and training, and w sooner to be to use c, w 67 zeros, kathy and i know, discuss the groups efforts to de escalate militarization and conduct educational outreach and the marianas since we 1st started getting environmental impact states us back and leave 1990 is there has been an expansion in the region how much weight and will be used and also our waters that surround us, especially with the mariana side and training and testing area which has expanded with all of our water resources around these islands. and it's really connecting

a lot of the spaces between the i to further understand the impacts of the expansion. i spoke with masters o m t or traditional healer sign of donald mindy, ola, who expressed his concerns about the ways military training is harmful to tomorrow, control systems including millennial or traditional healing practices. what am is a lot of things that are from true. we want to give a water pure app and even the ocean has to be green. because we, we think our patients a mellow to the ocean. we make them base every day, right to increase their militarization of the pacific in depth. and that is by the effect, may that be tomorrow that up to tomorrow, but now the generations and as was, should not be happening. we have to predict the future generation. some of them, we don't know when we don't want any. anybody coming out of the ocean with mashes or cancers, or stores or whatever do do the country our united states

practicing on their, their weapons out there in the ocean where we go out and we, they've been in there are, as there's a traditionally depended on the ocean for their lives because they have the my, they have the a, the, the name and don't send everything on land, but then they get their protein. most of the proteins from the ocean. we don't want any testified fish that we're going to have taken to or by the system to make us sick. my 2 accounts saw for need of tomorrow, announcement president, we on a half snyder and part of wisdom about the importance of water to tomorrow. life ways and language for advocacy work stablish from leaving the island to pursue higher education. i'm returning home to the realization that the interests of the native peoples were not being prioritized. i noticed that as time every time i

come home, i notice that a lot of things that. a are you know, critically important to us those tomorrow is those native people here um, become almost like the 2nd week priority and it saddens me. so i believe that, you know, having a focus voice on what are very important and essential to the survival of the native people are the very core of this organization. so we do a lot of advocacy and especially in public policy. and we solve called, you know, i like the so called watch dog or, you know, a lot of the public policies public policy really directly affects everything. everything from, you know, and especially our natural resources. you know, in the access, you know, to our natural resources and our access to, you know, these secret space is one issue, a particular important stop schneider and respect to the impacts of military training. and the marianas is the ongoing bombing them to us or fair. alonzo

mentioned earlier, a tiny, uninhabited island north obama, less than 2 miles long and half a mile wide. the us military has been bombing cm for training purposes since 1971. recently a confirmation of dropped $4000.00 more explosives there every year, along with tens of thousands more around. so, but i mean, ition if you go to western fisheries management, because, you know, those are the folks that look at our waters. and you will see how important nauseous, because it's a large bonding, reese, you know, and that's where all the fishes you know, gathered to, you know, to reproduce and provide food for it. why am i very emotional when you, when you ask that is because i know in the way they're doing their back because it's not only the us, it's other, their allies also practice there. you know, japan everywhere. i mean, anyone that have an ally, they want baptism, they drive, they fly, they're just from files in iowa and nebraska up here through the test that pilots

in durance, you know, and the mom and then go back. they want to have a relationship with the united states, and the part of that relationship is to for security, national security. but i don't, i don't believe, and i don't agree that we would have to compromise our, our house, you know, our, our survival because our health is our survival, our, our foot, the footprint of the military footprint on how it does is business on the island in a verified to environment. it's another, it's another issue. and it's prevalent that when we talk about expansion both into and in and here in role that you know, i haven't really heard much about, you know, i'm really to expansion there. but in tune in here, and the environment is like a 2nd. the 2nd issue, it's always talked about how the economic, you know,

economic of the benefits and, and all this and, and also of course national security. but they don't put a lot of emphasize and you know, correct me if i'm wrong, you know, i mean, i challenge anyone to come out then tell me publicly that they put a lot of emphasize on, on how the environment is not going to be in fact more going to be in fact and on what certain degree of that impact is because i haven't seen enough or read, you know, and, and, and that concerns. in addition to met activities, groups and the marianas are organizing to raise awareness about the effects of military actions and are home islands from plans to establish a series of live fire training ranges, high caliber of life, fire, and maneuver training bombing in the land waters. and aerospace and pug in into an in islands north of guam, in the commonwealth of the northern mariana is these training activities are called the commonwealth joint military training or a c,

j m t plans where we're still waiting for the c jan teeth, the commonwealth joint military training, the next the i us to come out. so it wasn't stopped, it's going to be proposed again. and again, the public has just really concerned that how many comments do you need before you, you realize that this is not a livable situation. where a 184 square miles of terrestrial land under something to be set about, you know, a lot of departments and agencies try to find a compromise between, you know, local indigenous interests and the military. and usually compromises a very good, formal way of like getting things done and moving forward. but when you think about the share permit impacts that, you know, these actions have on like land resources and people's livelihoods compromise isn't enough. it's not gonna cut it because what it's doing is so much more permanent and

so much more harmful by doing a compromises detrimental to the people who are most important, which is the people here. i visited david hank and n o i who hawaii a senior attorney at or of justice who are presented to 10 in women's association guardians. have connie hogwash and his center for biological diversity and the lawsuit. challenging and destructive sienna, my joint military training plans. i started proposing moving marines to guam. they were saying, oh, we can just continue with what we've been doing in the past. i'm simeon, which is just small arms fire. so target price practice basically with bullets. and then they actually discount it any possibility of doing training in august and saying it's too far away. it's too remote, we won't do anything there. then after they made the decision to move the marines to guam, they come out with this draft environmental impact statement for their training and or their and very on is that suddenly revealed that what they actually wanted to do

was turn 10 in pa get into major war sounds so, so on the island of penny, and it wouldn't just be limited to bullets. it would be more orders that are tillery and there be ariel gunship fanned. and cbs landings to be damaged to coal. reese there i've been. pug in this situation would be even more dire. they were basically working at the i, when forgetting about the indigenous people. forgetting about the families, they call that i went home saying that it's temporarily unoccupied because of the volcano and saying, okay, we're going to use this is our new target island. and then we're going to do an aerial bombardment and shipped to shore showing and amphibious assault with live fire. and basically the entire northern part of the island, which is where the village was before the volcano would be turned into an impact area. and when they examined that and the draft, yes, they said, oh, well, there won't be any impacts to people because there know people, they're forgetting about all the families were eager to return home. uh so you know,

what really just struck me was the military is complete lack of transparency and honesty about what was in store for the northern marianas. if marines were gonna be stationing one in april of this year, that to you to you throughout some of the proposed training plans for coggan and any and after $27000.00 comments were submitted as part of the national environmental policy act or a deep process neighbor requires federal agencies to examine the potential effects of their proposed actions on the human environments. revised plans for the northern marianas have yet to be released. it is definitely too soon to be popping any champagne over the changes when the marianas, because all we've seen so far is a press release from the governor of been, or the marianas, and a couple of days statements at a public press conference from the navy until they actually released

a new plan for the northern marianas. no one should feel comfortable that bombing organ and bombing 10 in are off the table. i mean, this is one thing that my decades of litigation against the military have taught me, is that, unfortunately, pitney, they really can't be bullied. um, you know what they say one day can change 180 degrees to the next. know now in the ukraine or ukraine, russia war situation and, and were china in sits it's, it's, uh, just making everybody nervous in the pacific. i always should be the

the, [000:00:00;00] the military and government officials have said plans for the northern marios have been revised construction on a day for airfield in san in continues, which poses it drives the tenants,

primary offer near shore environment and the health of the general public whose main water source will be compromised by proposed fuel pipeline the transport fuel to the airfields fuel tanks. this air field would be offered as an alternative to anderson air force base in guam, is bomber to get attacked. the $161000000.00 project is packaged for completion in 2025. so you cut across perfectly beautiful property and the value it, especially with just feel, even if it was going to be buried in the ground. how can you develop that lives? it just devalued our lab case change that just follow them all the way up and go up to your own property and make a line up there and you can put it on your own property up there with this is already being polluted with applied flights that are going in and outright they're proposing pipeline to bring show from the port all the way to the airport. it's

going to be underground pipeline. the study that was used by the military was not found into peer reviewed study. it was actually a study that was with the stratum group and which is supported by a funding from the co brothers, which of course, support pipelines and their students there's, they've been was, this is safer than what they're using right now, which is transporting my truck. so we question that using just that study and other other studies. and we also pointed out all these pipelines that have had damages and leaks which really detrimental for attorney, and is this over to their primary uncle for, for the drinking water. so that's what we're concerned for pretending, and we totally respect that the people on 20 and they're also looking for ways to boost if they are in common

e. mm hm. and we're just there to support them for what they see is best for the community. when we weren't pressing for the last 2 was, let's look at from a reasonable range of stationing alternatives other than warm. so why does that have to be warm in a modern world where you can deploy forces quickly by air? you know, why are we going with this sort of 20th century thinking that warm is the forward location? why can't we have a smaller contingent that rotates through and maybe a australia, maybe california, maybe hawaii. i don't really wish it on any place. but if you're going to make a rational decision about where decision troops, you have to do it in a transfer way. i mean, frankly, if you're concerned about north korea, alaska is closer. then mom is. david holds a unique perspective as an environmental attorney who has litigated against the military for decades and as represented groups across the marianas and hawaii in

matters related to the impacts of us military projects on the environment. currently represents the sierra club, hawaii in the ongoing litigation surrounding the red hill border crisis and environmental disaster and cautionary toford walheim, as our community rallies and protection of our fresh water uncle for steven, noted patterns by the us military, including a lot of public trust communication and transparency right around thanksgiving, military families drinking the water out of the military's and water supply and started turning on the tops in their kitchen. and it smelled like a gas station. and people were getting sick and you know, and, and been babies were getting rashes and the board is feeling wearable and still behaving some man was telling their people, the water is safe to drink. don't worry about it. well, i know who i joined the bus to are led by, oh wow. who water protector is a group on the front lines of the red hill? water prices also on the tour were members of rug nation and native organizations

centered around the liberation of indigenous peoples. from colonialism and slow factory and environmental and social justice movements on the way to the game of the us pacific fleet command county to franco. a lead organizer with or who are the protectors, spoke about how the communities please to shut down the road hill field. thanks, continue to be disregarded by the b. b. first go happened for some reason. spill happened in may of last year. second, spill have been in november of last year and it did not become public knowledge until uh, over a week after that november's bill that there was been trolling in the water system . so that included the thanksgiving weekend when military families came and sat down and gathered in drink water that the navy knew was fully contaminated and a 1000 people into the hospital. and they had to come forward and give it some kind of explanation because department of housing elders are demanding what is going on here. and that's the only reason we even know that this bill occurred. the amazed

bill was not made public dollars before. that's better that it happens. um and so in early december, uh, a collision of clock active is decided that something needed to be done. um, right. it was a difficult movement. there is nothing to physically block them. kids was occurring, you know, unfortunately, can physically make viewing, have been any passer uh, so we have to use other political um, you know, and then, and uh, social media tactics. and so the what was decided was to create a co op and a co, ha, co, uh, is a, um, a, a family of spiritual gathering uh for the community to come together. uh and, and distance associated by water. um, and that is, you know, river feeding comment here. i need to buy a whole lot to give us that nourishment as a movement to continue to, to find out the game as a token of solidarity, a offer and a water from behind starting coastline average. it in currently under threat from

the establishment of the us marine life fire training range complex. it wow. don't. yeah. oh, i got who? oh, got you. yeah, no, no, on the back. oh, are you here? well, you know where you, who maybe security interrupted our visit to the co. uh, is this the in county land? no way i'm just stating okay. okay. what is your call is you guys go to face it that way. i can be on camera. and this is a new, tiny land, right? but you gotta, you gotta face your time. is that what you're called a plan, so we can speak with families. but if you're not, what i'm doing for the yeah, yeah, they bought a different brand which is that the face of the state of the get out of the way this is this a state of hawaii lan. yeah, we're going to be leaving in a moment. but it just in your jurisdiction down, you don't have jurisdiction here. so you don't want you do not. you can go on and please we're going to have that conversation. captain jeff miller,

chief of staff of the u. s. navy pacific command, overseeing the red hills are feeling efforts, also walked over to our group at the co, uh, an exchange origin county who had the opportunity to remind the military that the quater protectors are always watching. giving them an update you know how to best want otherwise you think that today or eventually ever going yeah, yeah. always watch star away. while we were doing our, our, our pool in our prayer. you know, initially the the cheapest staff for the navy at pacific blue command. um jeff miller came out. um, someone that we've had discussions within the past. so, you know, at the moment was one of those senior members in charge of the dispute in over the hill. um, you know, came out to kind of check in and what we were doing. and then kind of give

a side comment that is basically monitoring or online presence and what we're up to, and that is something as an activist that isn't funny. and that we understand, we're continually putting yourself out on the line and you know, fully expose as, as civilian. but after that interaction, you know, we continued with, with our play. and following that, the security guard from the front of the base came out. tom basically telling us that we had to leave and we couldn't sell him in that area when we had understood already from doing activision on that i know on that occupied. i know that then in this particular moment, while this is still sovereign, wine kingdom land, that this is also state and county land and the department of defense doesn't just have jurisdiction to be able to do whatever they want. they have to follow the rules of law, and then the moments you can tell us to leave. and so we had an introduction which i reminded him. you know, you can't also leave if you want to do something, you know, feel free to call the police, but we don't have to move because you're telling us to any follow it up. where's the problem defense? we can do and say whatever we want, and you're just saying,

you cannot in this moment, you are wrong. step away, we're going to do what we gotta do. we're doing prayer here on our occupied land. it's and you've got to go and eventually you walked away. but it was, it was, you know, one of those moments when would somebody active is from around the world together just to show you know, the active military occupation of our land. while we are trying to do prayer and protection of water, we continue to get harassed on or occupied land on a daily basis. but that was a kind of special and powerful moment to share together and solidarity the next day, i incentives a community event at thomas square in observance of the whole, the whole e s to come memory, the restoration of hawaiian sovereignty. and as a way to give voice to hawaiian independence and issues surrounding militarization month events, i met up with joy and tomato a canal. kamali active is to spoken the importance of collective solidarity

throughout the pacific. we know that the u. s. navy 93000 people being poisoned by jet fuel is literally the equivalent number of what it's a of the displacement of martial ease from nuclear testing. they don't care about poisoning 90000 people. they don't care about displacing those people. in fact, i think that if the navy had its way, it would literally, you know, let the water be poisoned and that would mean we would so many people would have to move. and the military could do it at once. so we need to, like, i mean, not just the community but not a lot, just a ways like every, like other people, other parts of the world need to show up for each other to stop is because if it's not here, where is that fuel going to go, it's going to go to $100.00 is going to go to ok. now it's going to go to other parts of the pacific, the camp of that are already over in and dated by military activision. it may not be that we go to war, but if we do go to war, we are the ones you immediately affected, right?

it'll be hawaii as the head of the, as i say, the head of the octopus. we are going to be the most impacted. we will suddenly be under martial law and not only that solid guam, so what so more so what all of these different like? no one's early the meals are occupied. places that come under the u. s. i live in terms of philippines and even places that are supposedly not then the us left, right. the was, it doesn't leave cia and any a bad, an organizer with could only by a totally sion of native hawaiian organizations, pricing and defensive red hill was a panelist during a discussion on red hill at the sovereignty event. she noted similar patterns by the us military across the pacific. i remember i remember the day that this is a friday 18 and 30 was our head of our board of water supply and he's been fighting this fight for

a very long time. he came on the news and basically said that they are shutting down the wells that are tapped into this. i prefer a top of and that she didn't go through it or returned it back. god about it might not ever come back online again. i don't want it this way. he said that when we all, everybody was work. we're all talking about it. we're all having the safety. i should like to make a tough to leave that, that just happened like how that happened and and you know, she has so many others have been fighting this for a long time and really never get that off of her back. it might and may never come back on my and so the threat is that she has devastated national security has never been about us. it's national security is about securing american in for us

and keeping the business lanes open. it's if this was about the security we'd have playing with our water wouldn't be threatened if this was about security would've never had, we would, we wouldn't be so occupied. we're actually target. all right, so there's never been a real concern about hawaiian security or national security there. they allow false missile alerts, they allow all kinds of contamination. they bomb our sacred sites. this is not about national security. this is about a constant state of and security fund, who can, that will not be in the to not fun who to see how people go. not fun who to see has

a look. some of them on the same rock. just don't you have to safe house because after care and engagement equals the trail, when so many find themselves will support. we choose to look for common ground the the um lien. uh not the uh the

the theme uh far. uh uh i live in paradise. the largest and southern most i live in the marianas archipelago . while honda is dotted with blush, palm trees, and miles and miles of soft waves and surrounded by turquoise squatters of the pacific ocean. but our paradise has a toxic legacy. swamp shares the history of contamination with many us and overseas military based communities is common knowledge that the us military use is highly toxic substances and we are experiencing contamination of our land and waters and the agent orange. p. fast pcp is petroleum fuels. heavy metals fonts high organic compounds all the military war time cocktails. so you can imagine from being carpet

bomb during world war 2. we're an island is been referred to by veterans as one big