Oct. 6, 2016
Nevada Wolf Pack women's basketball sophomore MorningRose Tobey grew up in Billings, Mont. as a member of the Assiniboine Sioux tribe. Six hours east of the her hometown, Native Americans from across the nation, spanning many different tribes, have gathered to protest the construction of a pipeline meant to carry oil from the Dakotas down to Illinois.
"These protests have been going on since April," Tobey said. "They're part of my tribe, so I started following along with what was happening. It started being really hard to be away, and I knew I needed to go support."
So, Tobey did just that. She packed up a car with her mom and brother and drove the 18 hours from Reno to the Standing Rock Sioux reservation in Cannon Ball, N.D. However, as she was planning the trip, she got an unexpected message from Wisconsin Badger guard Bronson Koenig. Koenig was planning a basketball camp for the kids camping with their families at the protest.
"The timing was perfect," said Tobey. "I was already on my way."
The camp took lasted over three hours in a packed gymnasium. While the student-athlete organizers had expected 50 kids, more than 100 showed up, and families stayed to watch. The kids in attendance received lessons from a number of instructors including Tobey, who has a year of college basketball playing experience under her belt. Koenig, who is the starting point guard for the Wisconsin men's basketball team, was heavily involved as well among others.
"It was a great way for the kids to distress. They really got more out of the camp than just basketball skills."
After the camp took place, Tobey and her family stayed at the camp for the rest of the weekend. With so many different tribes in attendance, each tribe took time during the night to showcase themselves and explain why they supported the original protest. Tobey said she met close to 200 people in her time at Standing Rock.
"It was so cool to see all the tribes in one place," Tobey said, citing that this is something that doesn't happen often. "I think it's important for me as a college athlete to help spread the word. It's an experience I'll never forget."
It was a long but quick trip for Tobey as she made the trek back to Reno for classes on Monday.
