Neil Young releases new video – watch

Neil Young has released a new video for his song “Mother Earth“.

Scroll down to watch it.

The video opens with footage from Young’s January 19, 2014 show at the Jack Singer Hall in Calgary, Alberta as part of his recent Honor The Treaties run of dates.

The video also features footage from Peter Mettler’s documentary Petropolis: Aerial Perspectives on the Alberta Tar Sands. At a press conference ahead of the first Honour The Treaties date, Young launched a blistering attack on Canada’s federal government and Alberta’s oilsands development, accusing officials of “killing” First Nations through their exploitation of the Alberta tar sands.

According to a statement accompanying the release of the “Mother Earth” video, “Recently, Neil Young completed a brief tour of his native Canada consisting of four benefit concerts under the banner of ‘Honor The Treaties.’ The nature of these shows were assembled to raise money and awareness for the Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation (ACFN) Legal Defense Fund. The ACFN refer to themselves as K’ai Taile Dene, meaning ‘people of the land of the willow.’ A Legal Defense fund was set up to support the ACFN’s legal challenges against oil companies and government that are obstructing their traditional lands and rights. As people of the land the ACFN have used and occupied their traditional lands in the Athabasca region for thousands of years, hunting, trapping, fishing and gathering to sustain themselves and continue spiritual cultural rights passed down through generations. The ACFN’s legal challenges will ensure the protection of their traditional lands, eco-systems and unique rights guaranteed by Treaty 8, the last and largest of the nineteenth century land agreements made between First Nations and the government of Canada, are upheld for the benefit of future generations.”

“Mother Earth” first appeared on Young’s 1990 album, Ragged Glory.