the size is rich because the um lien uh, not the uh unique. we seen uh 5 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 spend the last year on a journey through the mariana islands and so i who hawaii documenting incision is resistance 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 shared the ways the water is embedded in our language and life waves. so i'm about to get on a flight to side pan and meet with some of the activism community members to see how they feel about the ways that the military 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 inside pan connected with members of our comfortable 670, the grassroots community group doing critical. we're trying 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 the o. c, w 67, zeros, kathy and i know discuss the groups efforts to de escalate militarization and conduct educational outreach in the marianas. since we 1st started getting environmental impact states us back and leave 1990 is there. it has been an expansion in the region, how much weight and will be used, and also our waters that surround us, especially with me on a site when 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 or m t, or a traditional healer. saying that donald mindy ola, who expressed is concerned 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 furniture. we want to give a water pure app and even the ocean has to be green. because we, we think our patients the mellow to the ocean, we make them be able to invite to increase the realtor association of the pacific in depth. and that is going to affect may not be tomorrow that up to tomorrow, but now the generations. and as was, should not be happening. we have to protect the future generation. some of that, we don't know when we don't want any. anybody coming out of the ocean with mashes or cancer is as, or as, or whatever. do do a 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 or as there's a traditionally defended on the ocean for the 11th human. 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 on the ocean. we don't want any testified fish that we're going to be taken to or by the system to make us sick . but to accounts all for need of tomorrow announcement president brianna have schneider in parted with them about the importance of water to tomorrow. life ways and language for advocacy work stems from leaving the island to pursue higher education. i'm returning home to the realization that the interest of the native peoples were not being prioritize. i notice 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 saw 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, we're not 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 lawn dimensionally in 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 con, permission to 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 water. 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 allies also practice there. you know, japan everywhere. i mean, anyone that have an ally, they, they've gone after them, they drive, they fly their jobs from files in iowa or 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 and here, and the environment is like a 2nd. the 2nd issue, it's always talked about all the economics, 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 impact and on what certain degree of that in fact is because i haven't seen enough for read, you know, on 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 a by fire and maneuver training bombing in the land waters in the air space and pog in, in 10 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 is just really concerned that how many comments do you need before you, you realize that this is not a livable situation. we're a 184 square miles of terrestrial land under something to be thought about, you know, lot of departments and agencies try to find a compromise between, you know, local indigenous interests and in the military and is usually compromised as 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 represented the 10 in women's association guardians of connie, park in wash, and there's center for biological diversity in a lawsuit. challenging and destructive sienna, my joint military training plan 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 simian, 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. and then after they made the decision to move the marines to guam, they come out with this draft environmental impact statements for the training. and the northern barry on is that suddenly revealed that what they actually wanted to do was turn tinney and pa get into major war sounds. so on the island of tinney and

it wouldn't just be limited to bullets. it would be mourners and artillery. and there be ariel got to ship sand. am cbs landings to be damaged the coal rece there? i've been pug, in this situation with even more dire. they were basically working at the island, 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 they were 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 in the draft, yes, they said, oh, well, they won't be any impacts to people because they're no 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, the g o t, throughout some of the proposed training plans for coggan antennae and after $27000.00 comments were submitted. as part of the national environmental policy act or a deep process, nature requires federal agencies to examine the potential effects of their proposed actions on the human environments. revised plans for the northern mariano 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 event 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

august and bombing 10 in are off the table. i mean, this is one thing that my decades of litigation are against the military. have todd 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 or water situation and, and we're china in yes it's, it's, it's, uh, it's making everybody nervous in the pacific and we shouldn't be the least. russian states never as tight as i'm one of the most sense community best. most all sense and up in the system must be the one else holes. question about this,

even though we will then in the european union, the kremlin machine, the state on the rush, coding and supports the r t spoke neck, keeping our video agency roughly all the band on youtube. the question, did you say you requested the for military and government officials have said plans for the northern mariano as

have been revised construction on a day for or field in san in continues which poses a threat to 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 and in guam is while i'm ready to get attacked. the $161000000.00 project is packaged for completion in 2025. so you cut across perfectly beautiful property in devalue it, especially with jesse or even if it was going to be buried in the ground. how can you develop that last it? just evaluate 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 mail 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 a stratum group, which is supported by a funding from the co brothers, which of course, support pipelines. and there, stated there's taping 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 20, and is this over to their primary aqua for, for the drinking lot or. so that's what we're concerned for pretending. and, but we totally respect that the people on turn in they are also looking for ways to

boost their economy. mm hm. and we're just there to support them for what they see is best for the community when we will. preston for the last 2 was let's look at some, 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 australia and maybe california may be in hawaii. i don't really wish it on any place. but if you're going to make a rational decision about where to station troops, you have to do it in a transparent way. i mean, frankly, if you're concerned about north korea, alaska is closer than mom is. david holds a unique perspective as an environmental attorney has litigated against military

for decades, and as represented groups across the marianas and hawaii in matters related to the impacts of the us military projects on the environment. currently he represents the sierra club, hawaii, an ongoing litigation surrounding the red hill border crisis and environmental disaster and cautionary toford walheim. as our community bradley's and protection of our fresh water uncle for david noted patterns by the us military, including a lot of public trust, communication and transparency. right around thanksgiving, military families drinking the water out. the military's on water supply and started turning on the tops and their kitchen. and it smelled like a gas station. and people are getting sick and you know, and, and been babies were getting rashes in the board and feeling wearable. and still, the navy command was telling their people, the water is safe to drink. don't worry that it. well in a while. so i joined a bus to are led by a walker. the water projectors

a group on the front lines of the red hill water prices. also on the tour were members of rug nation, need of an organization centered around deliberation, of indigenous peoples from colonialism and slope factory and environmental and social injustice. movement on the way to the gate of the us pacific fleet command county do. franco. a lead organizer with a while, who are the protectors, spoke about how the communities please to shut down the road. hill field, thanks. continue to be disregarded by the maybe the 1st go happened for some reason . spill happened in may of last year. uh 2nd. spill have been in november of last year and it did not become public knowledge until over a week after the 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 the drink water that the navy knew was fully contaminated in a 1000 people into the hospital. and they had to come forward and give it some kind of explanation because department of health and others 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 better that it happened. and so on early december, a coalition of black active is decided that something needed to be done. right. it was a difficult movement. there is nothing to physically block them. kids was occurring, you know, unfortunately, can't physically make viewing happen any faster. so we have to use other political um, you know, and then, and social media tactics. and so the, what was decided was to create a co op and a co, ha, uh, co op is a, um, a, a family of spiritual gathering uh, for the community come together. uh, and, and distance associated by water. and that is, you know, where it was eating comedy here. i need to buy a whole lot to give are said nourishment as a movement to continue to, to fire at the gate as a token of solidarity,

a offer and water from behind start and coastline equity and currently under threat from the establishment of the us marine life fire training range complex. dig uh new. uh you got a new wow. don't. yeah. oh i go who? oh guy. yeah. yeah, no, no, the back. oh i here. well, you know, are you who maybe security interrupted our visit to the co a in county land though, but i'm just stating okay, okay, wait, and they'll call you, is you guys gotta face it that way? i can be on camera. and this is antonio plan, right? yeah, i'm gonna try to face your account pulled up here and all the plans that we can speak with that way. but if you're not with us or for the name. yeah. yeah. they bought the defense. brent, which is not the face of the state of the guy without with this, is this the 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 we're gonna have that conversation . captain jeff miller, chief of staff, the u. s. navy pacific, the command overseeing the red hill. just feeling efforts also walked over to our group at the koa and exchanged words from county who had the opportunity to remind the military that the water protectors are always watching. you remember enough to know how to best want otherwise. me think that today i'm pretty sure they are going down the hallways watch star away while we were doing our, our pool in our prayer and you know, initially the the chief of staff for the navy had specifically come in. um jeff miller came out. um, someone that we've had discussions within the past who, 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 kinda check in on what we were doing. and then kind of give a side comment that is basically monitoring your 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 ourself 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 me in that area where we get 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 couldn't 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 else. feel free to call the police, but we don't have to move because you're telling us to and you follow it up.

where's department 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 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 our 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 attended a community event at thomas square in observance of the holy. he asked 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 it cannot. 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 go on 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 work, 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 it so more so what all of these different, like i know it'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. but he wasn't, doesn't leave town any, a bad, an organizer with could only by a solution of native hawaiian organizations pricing and defensive. red hill was a panelist during a discussion on red hill to sovereignty event. she noted similar patterns by the us military across the pacific. i remember i remember the day that this was a friday 18, and 34 is 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're shutting down the wells that are tapped into this. i prefer a top of and. d she's doing the fluid or returned it back on the bed. it might not never come back online again. i don't want it this way. he said that and we're, when we all, everybody was work. we're all talking about it. we're all having the safety. i should make an attempt to leave that, that just happened like how that happened and and you know, she had so many others had been fighting this for a long time and really never guessed that offer for back. it might, it may never come back on my and so the threat is that the, as 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 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, the, to not fun who to see how people do. not fun, who rooms, he has a look them done on

the or take a fresh look around. there's a life kaleidoscopic, isn't just a shifted reality distortion by tell us to do vision with no real opinions.

fixtures, design to simplify will confuse really once a better world. and is it just because it shows you fractured images, presented to this? but can you see through their illusion going underground can no, oh no e i g me we love god. i live in paradise.