"SAULT STE. MARIE, Mich. — Two blocks south of the St. Mary’s River and passing freighters, children from JKL Bahweting tribal school poured off buses, carrying drums, dancing and chanting.

'Protect the water!' a young girl chanted. 'Protect it!' her classmates answered.

The children were encouraged to raise a ruckus last week as gray clouds hung low and the last brittle, rust-colored leaves blew off trees in Michigan’s far north. They were joined by other adult members of the Sault (pronounced 'Soo') Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians, various First Nation communities in nearby Canada, the Bay Mills Indian Community and other locals in protest of a pipeline that’s been sending oil through the region since shortly after World War II."

Brian Bienkowski reports for Environmental Health News November 21, 2016 as part of the ongoing "Sacred Water" series. [2]