<P> Actress Jane Fonda was one of a delegation of 50 people who served a Thanksgiving dinner in nearby Mandan, capturing media attention . Business owners traveled from as far as Massachusetts and Pennsylvania to serve food to protesters at Standing Rock . </P> <P> A Thanksgiving Day protest in Portland, Oregon drew about 350 in heavy rain . </P> <P> In November, a group called Veterans Stand for Standing Rock formed to participate in nonviolent intervention to defend the demonstrators from what the group has called "assault and intimidation at the hands of the militarized police force ." According to The New York Times, "as many as 2,000 veterans" indicated that they would gather at the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation to serve as "human shields" for protesters . The organizers of these protests included retired Baltimore police sergeant Michael A. Wood, Jr., and Wes Clark, Jr., the son of former Supreme NATO Commander and 2004 presidential candidate Wesley Clark . Wes Clark, Jr is affiliated with The Young Turks . </P> <P> Following the executive order made by President Trump in January 2017 which overturned the decision of former President Obama to halt the construction of the pipeline and the February order in which he authorized the Army Corps of Engineers to proceed, US veterans returned to Standing Rock to a form human shield to protect Dakota Access pipeline protesters . Air force veteran Elizabeth Williams said, "We are prepared to put our bodies between Native elders and a privatized military force . We've stood in the face of fire before . We feel a responsibility to use the skills we have ." </P>

Standing rock protesters now protesting line 5 pipeline