Jill Stein isn’t afraid to get her hands dirty in the fight for justice

A warrant for the arrest of Green Party presidential candidate Jill Stein was issued this Wednesday by a judge in North Dakota. She has been charged with misdemeanor trespassing as well as vandalism.

Local activists in Morton County, North Dakota, invited Jill Stein and her running mate, Ajamu Baraka, to join their protest against putting an oil pipeline in “sacred and culturally sensitive grounds” belonging to the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe.

Stein accepted her invitation, and went so far as to spray paint: “I approve this message,” over the blade of a bulldozer.

Baraka followed suit, painting “decolonization” on a separate piece of equipment.

The Native American tribe, along with some local farmers and activists, have been protesting the pipeline since April of 2016. This $3.7 billion pipeline would carry over four states and be the first of its kind to carry crude oil from the Bakken Shale oil formation to the U.S. Gulf Coast. The Standing Rock Sioux Tribe is concerned that the placement of the pipeline could leak or spill, causing damage to sacred burial sites, as well as potentially pollute the surrounding area’s drinking water.

The Green Party, naturally, is against the pipeline due to the link oil extraction has to climate change. Jill Stein has commented on her actions, saying she hopes “the North Dakota authorities press charges against the real vandalism taking place at the Standing Rock Sioux reservation: the bulldozing of sacred burial sites and the unleashing of vicious attack dogs.” 

This is not the first time that Stein has been charged with trespassing. During her 2012 presidential campaign, a group of people were protesting the Keystone XL pipeline, and Stein was arrested for attempting to bring the group supplies.

Stein’s willingness to go above and beyond for minority groups as well as her dedication to fighting against the fossil fuel industry, is a stark contrast to Republican Candidate Donald Trump, who “support[s] the pillage of the planet as his energy advisor’s company intends to run oil through the destructive pipeline.”  Additionally, her actions speak much louder than Hillary Clinton’s continued silence on the issue.

Many people have rallied behind Jill Stein, crowning her the new Bernie Sanders, due to their surprisingly similar platforms, her outspoken and continued call for social and political revolution, and most notably, her willingness to get her hands dirty and actually do the things she says she believes in.

Her recent involvement in the pipeline protest is an excellent display of why Jill Stein has recently seen an increase of success in the polls. People are desperate for a candidate they can trust to take action, for someone who is willing to get dirty and fight for what they believe in. It would appear that Jill Stein is one of few candidates, if not the only candidate, who is willing to take action.