At Dinner With Hollywood's Elite, President Obama Failed Standing Rock Water Protectors and Cheyenne River Chairman Frazier

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Standing Rock: Oct. 27, 2016: Water protectors arrested in prayer.

At Dinner With Hollywood's Elite, President Obama Failed Standing Rock Water Protectors and Cheyenne River Chairman Harold Frazier

Through the years, the details of the lavish dinner that Obama attended have leaked out. It was the day that Obama was at an expensive fundraiser dinner with Hollywood's elite -- and ignored Cheyenne River Harold Frazier's plea for help.

By Brenda Norrell, Censored News, Dec. 26, 2025

There was very little information made public at the time. During President Obama's private dinner with Hollywood's elite, Cheyenne River Chairman Harold Frazier asked Obama to intervene and prevent Standing Rock water protectors from being shot with rubber bullets, beaten, strip-searched and jailed in October of 2016.

Obama did not respond to Chairman's Frazier's plea. Obama failed to intervene and refused to stop the police violence. Two days later, law enforcement attacked peaceful water protectors in prayer with tear gas, tasers, and rubber bullets and beat them with batons.

Through the years, little was known about the private dinner until now.

The Democratic roundtable with Obama on October 25, 2016, in Beverly Hills, was attended by those who could pay $33,400 for a plate. The host was kept secret from the media, who were not invited.

The event was a fundraiser for the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC) at the home of Ryan Murphy, the Hollywood producer known for the television series American Horror Story.

Local and state law enforcement and troops with the National Guard conducted a military-style sweep and 140 water protectors were arrested on Oct. 27, 2016. They were shot with rubber bullets, tasers and tear gas and beaten with batons. Photo by Jenni Monet for The PBS NewsHour

At Standing Rock, a different Horror Story was unfolding.

Frazier, Chairman of Cheyenne River Lakota in South Dakota, was granted a special meeting, or seat at the table at the roundtable to represent the No Dakota Access Pipeline movement.

Chairman Frazier was disappointed with Obama's response, and made it public at the time.

Speaking with Obama, Chairman Frazier described how the pipeline's path near the Missouri River and Lake Oahe jeopardized the drinking water for Lakota and millions downstream. Chairman Frazier told Obama that water is a "human issue," saying, "at some point, we're all drinking the same water."

Chairman Frazier urged Obama to stop the pipeline construction immediately and protect the rights of the Lakota people, their sacred sites, and the waters of the Missouri River.

Chairman Frazier raised serious concerns about the "militarized police response" and the mistreatment, the strip searches and jailing of peaceful protesters. He argued that the pipeline violated the United States' treaty obligations to the Great Sioux Nation and called for a full environmental impact statement.

Instead of taking action, Obama told Frazier to have faith in the consultative process. During interviews at the time, Obama was asked whether he would intervene and told reporters that he was letting Standing Rock "play out."

After the meeting, Chairman Frazier said, "I didn't really get the answers that I was hoping for, but I'm still optimistic we will prevail in stopping this pipeline."

Chairman Frazier said Obama agreed to continue working through the proper channels and agencies in the federal government.

After the roundtable, Chairman Frazier urged everyone to stay strong.

"We have to stay strong and keep up the fight."

"In the end, we will prevail."

"In the end, we will stop this pipeline."

Let's keep working," Chairman Frazier.

Now: A Federal Appeals Court Hears of the Law Enforcement Violence

Obama's failure to intervene and protect the Standing Rock water protectors, while enjoying lavish dinners with Hollywood's famous in October of 2016, resurfaces now.

The excessive force cases of Marcus Mitchell, Dine'/Navajo, and Sophia Wilansky went before a federal appeals court in Minnesota last week.

Mitchell was shot in the eye, and blinded in his left eye, by lead-filled bean bags fired by 12-gauge shotguns by Bismark Police and Morton County deputies. Mitchell was brutalized by police as he lay bleeding on the ground on the night of Jan. 18, 2017 at Backwater Bridge.

Wilansky's left arm was blown apart by an explosive fired by law enforcement from  12-gauge shotguns on the night of Nov. 20, 2016 at Backwater Bridge. As she lay bleeding, police officers laughed at her. While hospitalized, her clothing evidence was stolen by agents.

Chairman Frazier told Free Speech Radio, after the roundtable with Obama, "Well, I don’t think the people in North Dakota’s attitudes have changed. For the last 100 years, they’ve really shown that they’re still there, the hatred’s still there towards Indian people."

I visited with the U.S. Attorney’s Office here, about two or three weeks ago, and I asked him point blank, I said, “How can a non-Indian physically assault an Indian and get away with it?”

And I was referring to when the DAPL security – I’ve seen videos where they threw people down and they turned the dogs loose. And his response was, “Well, that’s on state lines.” So I said, “Oh, so does that mean if a non-Indian comes to an Indian on Indian land, the Indian could do it back?”

“Oh no,” he said, “You’d go to jail.”

So my conclusion was that, only in America, where a non-Indian can physically assault an Indian person and get away with it. And that’s really a shame on our country.

More:

Listen to the Free Speech Radio interview

https://fsrn.org/2016/10/cheyenne-river-sioux-chairman-brings-pipeline-opposition-to-meeting-with-obama/

Copyright Brenda Norrell, Censored News