Yesterday Tariq, one of the Oceti Sakowin Youth, published an op-ed with MTV on her experience meeting President Obama and what inspires her to run. Tariq has been such a fierce and strong part of the campaign, and we’re proud to have her running with us to D.C. Read an excerpt of her piece below, and click here to see the entire essay: http://on.mtv.com/2aLLVoW “Growing up on a Native American reservation in North Dakota, it was easy to feel like the rest of the country didn’t care about us. The Standing Rock Reservation has very few resources for young people, and those that do exist are constantly shutting down for lack of funding. We have no teen center and few job or educational opportunities. Our people are dying of drug abuse and alcoholism. I’ve lost far too many loved ones to suicide. I shared this with the president when he met with myself and a small group of young people from our tribe in 2014. It was an emotional meeting for all involved. We told him stories about our struggles on the reservation, and he cried with us when one of my friends talked about having to leave college in order to come home and care for his siblings after his mother became addicted to meth. We told the president what it was like to feel that, after centuries of violence and oppression toward Native American people, our country still doesn’t care about us. In response, the president told us about how he and Michelle had also once felt like they were on the outside looking in, but by persistently raising their voices, they had been able to affect positive change for their communities and, ultimately, for the entire country. That day I knew I wanted to become a warrior for my people.” Above, you’ll also see the latest short video we’ve made documenting our journey. As we move farther east the air is getting more humid, and we are moving through time changes. Our bodies are tired, but we keep pushing – we are running for our people. Back home in North Dakota, our allies are continuing their efforts to stop the pipeline by camping on the lawn of the state capitol. Our hearts and prayers are with them! Anna, Bobbi Jean, and the Oceti Sakowin P.S. If you're in the area, come join our rally this Saturday, August 6th at 1 pm at Lafayette Square in front of the White House. Be sure to RSVP to the Facebook event page: http://bit.ly/2aEEGwi