Vet to Join and Film #NoDAPL Live
Donation protected
Hello, my name is Scott Ferguson. I am a 6 year veteran of the Indiana Army National Guard who would like to join the stand with a large group of like minded veterans at the Dakota Access Pipeline on Dec. 4-7, 2016.
This money is to cover my Travel Expences, buy proper Safety Gear (Both Weather & Body Armor), and proper filming equipment in order to record first hand what happens when thousands of veterans stand up for what they believe in.
The Problem:
What is happening right now at Standing Rock does not represent the core values of this country. At least, not the same ones I chose to fight for when I enlisted. One of the simplest of these core values is our right to free speech. We have video evidence of peaceful journalists being shot with rubber bullets in the middle of interviews, people being sprayed with water canons while praying, and many other nonviolent (should be constitutionally protected) forms of protest being met with violent measures.
The problem is that the people watching from home are seeing a very tainted side of the picture in main stream media. The majority of reports are based on eyewitness accounts and unclear footage, usually from far behind the front line. The American people need to see up close what is actually happening. Not from the point of view of the police, or from a camera man back on a hill, but first hand from what protesters themselves are facing.
How I Can Help:
With the use of body and helmet cameras, I want to safely and peacefully record a first hand account of what happens when thousands of United States Veterans stand together for something they believe in. I want to give the American people a true, unfiltered view of history in the making.
About Me:
I grew up in a very patriotic family. As a young child I knew very well that I would never be forced, but always highly encouraged, to join the military. To do so would follow in the footsteps of a long line of proud service members. I am extremely proud to be part of a lineage of people who have always fought for what they believed. As I became a young man I was engrained with the idea that I had a duty to fight, if called upon, to keep this country free and to protect its people and their values. So in 2008 I enlisted.
I chose the Army National Guard over other branches in order to be available for service not just abroad, but at home as well. However succesful I was in garrison (rising to the rank of an NCO quickly, placing multiple times in state soldier of the year competitions...), though, I was never able to serve in either capacity. Even after multiple attempts to volunteer for state side emergency activations, I was always called off for one reason or another out of my control. I was trained up, ready, and willing to help wherever I could, but never got to use those skills for the good. Over the years I have come to feel more and more empty about my service history and how little I feel I did.
Fast forward to the present. I now have a degree in business, just sold a succesful auto garage, sold/donated/gave away most of my posessions, and put my house on the market to move to Colorado in my van. I did all of this in order to begin living a more sustainable lifestyle, and also build a business to help others do the same. So here I am, mostly broke after a big move, trying to get by doing side jobs for people, but feeling more free and happier than ever before.
Then came #NoDAPL...
Now, I did not expect to get so fired up about this issue. I have never been, and had no plans to become a political activist. But all of a sudden I wasn't free anymore. What is free about living in a country that can take people's land without asking, then violently harass them for asking it not to. I can't feel happy when I know that just a few hundred miles away are people who have to fight for a basic need like water. All of a sudden the same feelings I had before I enlisted came flooding back. I am able. I have no excuse. Just as I was taught when I was young, I have a duty to stand up for what I believe in.
Unlike the empty service history of my past, I want to stand now and make a difference with an Army of Veterans who are fed up and want to do the same. #NoDAPL
What You Are Funding:
The first $2000 will be spent on travel expenses, body armor, a gas mask, and what remaining specialty camera gear I need. This is the minimum amount needed in order for me to accomplish my mission and get to Standing Rock and start filming from the front.
If I can reach the full $5000 I will be able to get the equipment needed to feed live footage as events unfold for the american people to watch online. This is my ultimate goal, making it so that nothing can be done in secret.
If I were to somehow recieve a large amount above this, I would try to coordinate attaching cameras to as many peaceful veterans as possible. The more, the better.
Any and all unused money will be donated to the cause in the form of either other purchases needed on site, or cash donations, whichever is deemed more helpful when I get there.
Follow Me:
I will be posting information of where to find the videos I capture as soon as it is available. For now you can follow me on IG: @BlackThumbNomad
I am now also on Twitter! @BlackThumbNomad Follow me there for on the spot updates as things progress the next few days. Please retweet this link! http://www.gofundme.com/Film-NoDAPL
Please help get me to Standing Rock, keep me safe while I'm there, and allow me to show people what is really happening.
This money is to cover my Travel Expences, buy proper Safety Gear (Both Weather & Body Armor), and proper filming equipment in order to record first hand what happens when thousands of veterans stand up for what they believe in.
The Problem:
What is happening right now at Standing Rock does not represent the core values of this country. At least, not the same ones I chose to fight for when I enlisted. One of the simplest of these core values is our right to free speech. We have video evidence of peaceful journalists being shot with rubber bullets in the middle of interviews, people being sprayed with water canons while praying, and many other nonviolent (should be constitutionally protected) forms of protest being met with violent measures.
The problem is that the people watching from home are seeing a very tainted side of the picture in main stream media. The majority of reports are based on eyewitness accounts and unclear footage, usually from far behind the front line. The American people need to see up close what is actually happening. Not from the point of view of the police, or from a camera man back on a hill, but first hand from what protesters themselves are facing.
How I Can Help:
With the use of body and helmet cameras, I want to safely and peacefully record a first hand account of what happens when thousands of United States Veterans stand together for something they believe in. I want to give the American people a true, unfiltered view of history in the making.
About Me:
I grew up in a very patriotic family. As a young child I knew very well that I would never be forced, but always highly encouraged, to join the military. To do so would follow in the footsteps of a long line of proud service members. I am extremely proud to be part of a lineage of people who have always fought for what they believed. As I became a young man I was engrained with the idea that I had a duty to fight, if called upon, to keep this country free and to protect its people and their values. So in 2008 I enlisted.
I chose the Army National Guard over other branches in order to be available for service not just abroad, but at home as well. However succesful I was in garrison (rising to the rank of an NCO quickly, placing multiple times in state soldier of the year competitions...), though, I was never able to serve in either capacity. Even after multiple attempts to volunteer for state side emergency activations, I was always called off for one reason or another out of my control. I was trained up, ready, and willing to help wherever I could, but never got to use those skills for the good. Over the years I have come to feel more and more empty about my service history and how little I feel I did.
Fast forward to the present. I now have a degree in business, just sold a succesful auto garage, sold/donated/gave away most of my posessions, and put my house on the market to move to Colorado in my van. I did all of this in order to begin living a more sustainable lifestyle, and also build a business to help others do the same. So here I am, mostly broke after a big move, trying to get by doing side jobs for people, but feeling more free and happier than ever before.
Then came #NoDAPL...
Now, I did not expect to get so fired up about this issue. I have never been, and had no plans to become a political activist. But all of a sudden I wasn't free anymore. What is free about living in a country that can take people's land without asking, then violently harass them for asking it not to. I can't feel happy when I know that just a few hundred miles away are people who have to fight for a basic need like water. All of a sudden the same feelings I had before I enlisted came flooding back. I am able. I have no excuse. Just as I was taught when I was young, I have a duty to stand up for what I believe in.
Unlike the empty service history of my past, I want to stand now and make a difference with an Army of Veterans who are fed up and want to do the same. #NoDAPL
What You Are Funding:
The first $2000 will be spent on travel expenses, body armor, a gas mask, and what remaining specialty camera gear I need. This is the minimum amount needed in order for me to accomplish my mission and get to Standing Rock and start filming from the front.
If I can reach the full $5000 I will be able to get the equipment needed to feed live footage as events unfold for the american people to watch online. This is my ultimate goal, making it so that nothing can be done in secret.
If I were to somehow recieve a large amount above this, I would try to coordinate attaching cameras to as many peaceful veterans as possible. The more, the better.
Any and all unused money will be donated to the cause in the form of either other purchases needed on site, or cash donations, whichever is deemed more helpful when I get there.
Follow Me:
I will be posting information of where to find the videos I capture as soon as it is available. For now you can follow me on IG: @BlackThumbNomad
I am now also on Twitter! @BlackThumbNomad Follow me there for on the spot updates as things progress the next few days. Please retweet this link! http://www.gofundme.com/Film-NoDAPL
Please help get me to Standing Rock, keep me safe while I'm there, and allow me to show people what is really happening.
Organizer
Scott Ferguson
Organizer
Colorado Springs, CO