Bad River
- jeffgerst
- Mar 15, 2024
- 2 min read
2024 Unrated Documentary 87m
A good documentary can get under your skin. Bad River is a good documentary.
The Bad River Band of Lake Superior Tribe of Chippewa Indians is based in Northern Wisconsin (near Ashland). The Bad River have a long past of being wronged and standing up for themselves. In the mid-1800s when the U.S. government wanted Wisconsin’s native people to move to make room for white settlers, the Indians sent representatives to Washington, D.C. to demand the government honor established treaties and rights. The government took additional land but allowed the tribe to stay in Wisconsin. That's just one example in a long line of defiance.
Bad River documents the legacy of the band’s fights over the years and makes it clear those battles are not all history. Canadian oil company Enbridge has a pipeline (“Line 5”) running through the Bad River reservation. Enbridge had a contract allowing the pipeline to run through the reservation; that permission ended in 2013 but the company is still running the pipeline. Enbridge has not adequately maintained the pipeline. In one spot, it is exposed to the elements and is only feet away from the Bad River that flows into Lake Superior. The pipeline is one bad storm away from irrevocably damaging the reservation and a Great Lake. Although Enbridge is trespassing, the Bad River have been unsuccessful in their legal attempts to have the pipeline stopped or rerouted.
The documentary does a nice job of interspersing exposition with interviews and beautiful shots of the tribal land (and water). Bad River looks just gorgeous. Quannah ChasingHorse and Ed Norton provide top-notch narration. The film will convince you Enbridge should not be allowed to continue its illegal pipeline. You will be angry. You will want to do something.
If you aren’t familiar with the Bad River’s problems with Line 5 or the broader environmental catastrophe that could happen, then you are not alone. Bad River opened my eyes to a current event that will soon be making headlines similar to those of Standing Rock from a few years ago. After my screening, I spoke with Robert Houle, the Bad River Tribal Secretary. He stated Enbridge has tried to buy permission to continue the pipeline. With the launch of Bad River, Enbridge has more than quadrupled its offering price.
My only critique of the film was I was left wondering what I could do to help. Protests are likely coming but nothing is organized yet. The Bad River v. Enbridge legal battle is a David v. Goliath affair. Enbridge can outspend circles around the Bad River. It's not included in the film, but Houle shared this link with me if anyone is in any position to help support the cause:
