#oakflat — Public Fediverse posts
Live and recent posts from across the Fediverse tagged #oakflat, aggregated by home.social.
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#ApacheStronghold 'We Are Still Fighting'
Statement from Dr. #WendslerNosie Sr.
March 20, 2026"Many of you have heard that on Friday, the Ninth Circuit again refused to stop the Government from giving #OakFlat to #ResolutionCopper for destruction. This is sad news. But we will never stop fighting to protect Oak Flat and each place that is sacred to our people. And we are still fighting—in the courts, in Congress, and, most importantly, spiritually.
In the courts, there are still four lawsuits seeking to protect Oak Flat. All four cases are still going. And any one of these cases could still put a stop to the Government’s and Resolution’s plans to destroy Oak Flat:
- In Lopez v. United States, on the day after Friday’s ruling, seven brave Apache women filed an emergency appeal in the U.S. Supreme Court, asking the Court to stop the mine and protect Oak Flat. The Supreme Court could rule on that appeal any day. The women in that case can also ask the Ninth Circuit to reconsider its ruling in their case. The deadline to ask for reconsideration is April 27, 2026. That case focuses on religious freedom.
- In #SanCarlosApache Tribe v. United States, also part of Friday’s ruling, the Tribe can also ask the Ninth Circuit to reconsider its ruling and/or appeal to the Supreme Court. That case focuses on the Tribe’s rights, tribal consultation, and the inadequacy of the government’s decision-making process.
- In Arizona #Mining Reform Coalition v. United States, also part of Friday’s ruling, several environmental groups and the Inter-Tribal Association of Arizona can also ask the Ninth Circuit to reconsider its ruling and/or appeal to the Supreme Court. That case focuses on the government’s unfair appraisal of Oak Flat and inadequate #EnvironmentalReview.
- Apache Stronghold v. United States, which is our case, has been 'stayed' (or temporarily put on hold) waiting for the Ninth Circuit’s ruling, which came on Friday. Now that the Ninth Circuit has ruled, our case will start again in the district court. We will continue making every possible legal claim to protect Oak Flat.In Congress, on Tuesday, Representative #AdelitaGrijalva introduced legislation to preserve public lands in the Chí’chil Biłdagoteel Historic District and fight back against the proposed mine. This bill is an important part of the fight to protect Oak Flat.
But even more than legally and politically, we are continuing to fight spiritually. This fight has never been primarily about law or politics. It is about who we are as human beings, religiously and spiritually. If we allow sacred places to be destroyed for profit, we are saying that nothing is truly sacred. We are losing something essential about our humanity—our ability to respect #MotherEarth, to honor what is holy, and to live in balance with the world around us.
That is why we are calling on all people to continue raising their voices, in prayer and protest, to protect Oak Flat—to protect the sacred. We, the Apache Stronghold, invite you to an upcoming spiritual gathering on March 28-29, 2026 at Oak Flat.
The legal system may try to reduce our struggle to questions of ownership and profit. But our connection to Mother Earth predates those systems. It is something each one of us is born into, something we carry in our prayers, our songs, and our way of life. No matter what the courts rule, no matter what the government tries to do, we will never stop fighting to preserve our sacred places. We will not lose our connection to the Creator."
Source:
https://bsnorrell.blogspot.com/2026/03/apache-stronghold-we-are-still-fighting.html#ChíchilBiłdagoteel #ProtectOakFlat #SanCarlosApache #ResolutionCopper #Arizona #RioTinto #SaveOakFlat #CopperMining #Fight4OurExistance #SacredLand #TontoNationalForest #WesternApaches #ProtectTheSacred #IndigenousNews #IndigenousActivism #CorporateColonialism #DefendTheSacred #CensoredNews #ReaderSupportedNews
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#OakFlat March and Run: #ApacheStronghold Photos
By Apache Stronghold, Censored News, Feb. 9, 2026
"12th Annual #OakFlatMarch/Run. The final day of the run, Saturday, February 7, 2026, the experienced runners passed through the final corridor, ending at the Oak Flat campground. The annual gathering followed, with speakers representing many tribes, backgrounds, and ages sharing their thoughts on Oak Flat and the importance of protecting this sacred and irreplaceable site. Photos by Molly Peters.
Apache Stronghold is battling to protect Oak Flat from becoming the gigantic crater of a copper mine, that would destroy the Sacred Ceremonial Place, seize and pollute the water, and poison the air and land."
Source (includes photos):
https://bsnorrell.blogspot.com/2026/02/oak-flat-march-and-run-apache.html#ProtectOakFlat #SanCarlosApache #ResolutionCopper #Arizona #ChichilBildagoteel #RioTinto
#SaveOakFlat #CopperMining
#Fight4OurExistance #SacredLand #TontoNationalForest #WesternApaches #ProtectTheSacred #IndigenousNews #IndigenousActivism #CorporateColonialism #DefendTheSacred #OakFlatRun #CensoredNews #ReaderSupportedNews -
12th Annual Sacred Chi'chil BIł’dagoteel #OakFlat Run
February 5-8 pm, 2026
Schedule:
Thursday, Feb 5th - 4 pm Holy Ground Blessing and Dinner at Old San Carlos Monument. Run will follow after blessing
Friday, Feb 6th- 8 am March/Run will begin at the New Skate Park (Sport Complex) and will end in Miami, Arizona, at the Shrine
Saturday, Feb 7th - 8 am Run will begin at the Shrine in Miami, Arizona, to Oak Flat
Sunday, Feb 8th - 9 am Holy Ground Blessing at Oak Flat and then departure
FMI (Apache Stronghold website):
https://www.apache-stronghold.com/oak-flat-runFB page:
https://www.facebook.com/SaveOakFlatArizonaSource:
https://bsnorrell.blogspot.com/2026/02/sacred-chichil-bidagoteel-oak-flat.html#ApacheStronghold #ProtectOakFlat #SanCarlosApache #ResolutionCopper #Arizona #ChichilBildagoteel #RioTinto
#SaveOakFlat #CopperMining
#Fight4OurExistance #SacredLand #TontoNationalForest #WesternApaches #ProtectTheSacred #CorporateColonialism #DefendTheSacred #OakFlatRun #CensoredNews #ReaderSupportedNews -
Walking #BeyondCapitalism, #WendslerNosie Journeys to Federal Court in Phoenix
via #CensoredNews, January 3, 2026
Statement by Wendsler Nosie:
"Good afternoon to all my family, friends, relatives, and people. I come to you in this moment in time, knowing we all have been born into from our parents and those before. We all know those before us, suffered from a great #evil, who tried to destroy them. This evil still exists today.
Every day it works to control us and make its way to have us deceive our own children's lives, by them not being told the truth. We teach them to live and embrace a system of #capitalism that we surely know won't secure the future.
Through every passing generation, it clearly shows it has failed. From the birth of Europe to their unauthorized arrival here and the taking of the East Coast, wrongfully establishing their 13 colonies, they then turned toward the west, breaking all treaties that were dishonest from their inception, establishing a dishonest trust system allowing them to take more and more.
Their human ideology, their way to survive through their economic engine, has been a disaster. It takes and it takes and gives nothing back. No care for any kind of life, no care for the next generation. It's about living for now and being #greedy and destroying communities of people with their power of capitalism.
Since the beginning, through #colonization and capitalism, many here and around the world have suffered. People cried then and still today for a better day and still ask God, what have I done?
The political agenda of capitalism is to put fear in each of us. Pushing each of us towards the illusion that #MotherEarth and ourselves are useless. From fear we lose hope, the journey of spirituality and everything on mother earth, becomes disposable. Our mother earth is the timeline to everything. It gives us the water of life, it gives us the oxygen of life, it gives us the food of life, and it blesses us with life for our children and those yet to come.
It saddens me when this country does not prioritize all the sacred elements that give us life. It saddens me to witness that some no longer care to keep God's greatest gift alive. From a spiritual understanding, our love for one another is critical, our morals to make right decisions is critical and the love for our mother earth should be embedded forever.
We have all been taught not to recognize our mother and forced into a life to be colonized. We were blessed, in the beginning, with the tools of how to survive in the world that provides for us all.
This evil took those tools away and taught us how to be selfish, greedy, impassive and assimilate our minds and hearts to believe in capitalism. For what I have witnessed, I now can say, I see as what my father, my grandfather and great grandfather witnessed before me.
Capitalism demands your loyalty, to destroy every moral ethic, spiritual belief and God's way of life. I too know who cares and protects what God and Jesus had warned the world about. I will not be one who is loyal to capitalism, you will not fool me. If we really think it through, from those who say that capitalism will solve our problems, and when we actually understand it, disaster will occur, i.e. billions of gallons of water can remain forever, no contamination to the environment, no climate changes, one of the oldest religious ceremonies before the beginning of time continues, etc.
The United States of America clearly violated procedures and laws and ignored not only the #NativeAmericans, but also the state of #Arizona and the people of this country. Their decision to give full exemptions from the law has opened the door forever for #corporations to follow suit.
America, our civilization is in trouble and it needs your attention. As you and I today, as did our ancestors had encountered centuries ago, we are also in that moment. We cannot lose our mother earth, if she is lost, there is no life.
The sustainability of the Mother Earth ensures our children’s children will live . So, preserving mother earth today, will guarantee future generations.
I will be departing from #OakFlat on Sunday, January 4th at 11 AM. I will be walking and a little jogging to arrive in downtown Phoenix to attend the court hearings (#AZReform Mining Coalition, ITCA, San Carlos Apache Tribe and Lopez/Kinsey (Burdette) cases vs. U.S., which begin at 10 a.m. on January 7, 2026.
For those who do know me well, I had a spiritual encounter and must travel in this spiritual way. I ask each of you, if possible, to make a ceremonial fire, light a candle, or be in prayer.
The decision of the federal judges will weigh heavy on the future for water, environment, religion, and the ability to give federal exemptions to corporations without following legal policies.
#Usen (Creator), hear my prayers, as I make this journey to encounter many ugly obstacles but also witness the beauty of all life. I will let No Fear distract me, for all the beautiful spirits will be in all four directions."
Wendsler Nosie Sr.
Source:
https://bsnorrell.blogspot.com/2026/01/walking-beyond-capitalism-wendsler.html#SaveOakFlat #WaterIsLife #ProtectOakFlat #DefendTheSacred #NativeAmericanActivism #CorporateColonialism #CapitalismMustDie #ApacheStronghold #SanCarlosApache #ResolutionCopper
#Arizona #ChichilBildagoteel
#RioTinto #CopperMining #Fight4OurExistance #SacredLand
#TontoNationalForest #WesternApaches #ProtectTheSacred -
I just came across this from the #NationalTrustForHistoricPreservation website...
Updates on #OakFlat
December 22, 2025
"On December 3, Representative Adelita Grijalva (D-AZ) introduced the #SaveOakFlat from Foreign Mining Act (H.R. 6391). The legislation would repeal Section 3003 of the FY 2015 National Defense Authorization Act [#NDAA] in order to protect a site of significant #religious, #cultural, #historical, and #environmental importance to #TribalNations in #Arizona and across the nation.
"The #SacredSite is listed on the National Register of Historic Places as a Traditional Cultural Property—and for over 15 years—the National Trust has opposed the #mining project and supported preservation of the sacred site in many ways, including listing Oak Flat on our 11 Most Endangered Historic Places list in 2015, engaging in legal advocacy, and endorsing multiple legislative remedies.
"Pending federal litigation regarding Oak Flat is scheduled to be argued before the US Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit on Wednesday, January 7, 2026, and oral arguments can be viewed via the livestream beginning at 11:30 AM EST/9:30 AM MST."
Source:
https://savingplaces.org/public-lands/updates/oak-flat-legislation-introduced#ProtectOakFlat #SanCarlosApache
#ResolutionCopper #Arizona
#ChichilBildagoteel #RioTinto
#SaveOakFlat #CooperMining
#Fight4OurExistance #SacredLand #TontoNationalForest #WesternApaches #ProtectTheSacred #CorporateColonialism -
SAVE THE DATES!
#ProtectOakFlat: 11th Annual Sacred #OakFlat Marathon, Feb. 5 - 8, 2026
An ever-growing story, the Annual March to Save Oak Flat each February.
"We will once again walk off the reservation, freeing ourselves from the bondage of federal policies and the inaccuracies of the history of this country. We will no longer be invisible, for God the Creator, who is known throughout the world, has spoken, once again, through all his creations, that healing must begin to save what is left, so that those yet to be born will embrace the true spirit of life." - Wendsler Nosie Sr.
Posted on December 29, 2025, via #CensoredNews:
https://bsnorrell.blogspot.com/2025/12/protect-oak-flat-11th-annual-sacred-oak.htmlWeb page for the Oak Flat Run (via #ApacheStronghold):
https://www.apache-stronghold.com/oak-flat-run#SanCarlosApache #ResolutionCopper #Arizona #ChichilBildagoteel #RioTinto #SaveOakFlat #CopperMining #Fight4OurExistance #SacredLand #TontoNationalForest #WesternApaches #ProtectTheSacred #CorporateColonialism
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Not surprising...😠
#ApacheStronghold -- Supreme Court Again Declines to Protect Sacred #OakFlat
By Apache Stronghold, via @bsnorrell.blogspot.com, Oct. 6, 2025
Apache Stronghold - Supreme Court update
"This morning, we received word the Supreme Court has decided not to reconsider our case. While this decision is deeply disappointing, the fight to protect Oak Flat is far from over.
We will continue pressing our case in the lower courts. In addition to our case, three other cases are also seeking to protect Oak Flat, and the Ninth Circuit will hear oral argument in those cases on
January 7, 2026. We’ll also keep urging Congress, the President, and federal agencies to stop the destruction of Oak Flat and protect our ancestral sacred land.Oak Flat deserves the same respect and protection this country has long given to other places of worship.
Wendsler Nosie Sr. responding to the Supreme Court result, 'First, thank you everyone for all the hard work. You have been a blessing to us all in our country. Most importantly deep within us we
knew, but now we definitely witness the truth of this country, by the Supreme Court taking no action. What is evil created the unfairness, not just to us human beings but to all of God’s creations. When this country was founded, humans with the heart of #greed worked to mute the voice of the Creator. By this undertaking, we now live with a third entity, who was created to take and destroy every blessed
gift God gave us through our #MotherEarth. We know this evil as #Corporations, which comes from
#capitalism which #colonizes people. We must defend what is spiritual, holy and God’s greatest gift to us all, our Mother. Today is a new day for me as I now take the blessings from Usen (God), to walk
the footsteps of the purpose I was blessed with and no longer be a captive.'America has shown us the government’s true intentions, we are unheard and ignored once again. Our judicial system’s voice is muted by capitalism, the ultimate destruction of Mother Earth has been given permission as if they control her, she supplies our lives not the reverse. Such a sad reality.
We call on all people to pray, to raise their voices, and to join us in defending Mother Earth. Thank you for standing with us."
Source:
https://bsnorrell.blogspot.com/2025/10/apache-stronghold-supreme-court-again.html#SanCarlosApache #ChichilBildagoteel #WesternApaches #Fight4OurExistence #SacredLand #ReligiousLiberty #CensoredNews #Apache #ProtectOakFlat
#CopperMining #CorporateColonialism #SaveOakFlat #ProtectTheSacred #SCOTUS #SCOTUSIsCompromised #TontoNationalForest #ResolutionCopper #RioTinto -
#SanCarlosApache Tribe welcomes Federal Court ruling delaying trade of sacred Oak Flat to Chinese-backed #ResolutionCopper
By San Carlos Apache Tribe, Censored News, June 9, 2025
#SanCarlosApacheNation, #Arizona — "The San Carlos Apache Tribe welcomes Friday’s federal court ruling preventing the Trump Administration from trading sacred Oak Flat to Chinese-backed Resolution #CopperMining no sooner than 60 days after the government releases an environmental report expected to be published later this month.
"The #Trump Administration had indicated that it intended to trade 2,422 acres of #TontoNationalForest 70 miles east of #PhoenixAZ that includes Oak Flat to Resolution Copper immediately upon publication of the mine’s updated environmental report.
U.S. District Court Judge Dominic W. Lanza’s order 'preclude(s) the United States Forest Service from proceeding with the challenged land exchange until 60 days after the issuance of the Final Environmental Impact Statement, which is anticipated to be issued on June 16.'
" 'We are grateful that Judge Lanza has provided us an opportunity to be heard,' said San Carlos Apache Tribe Chairman Terry Rambler. 'The two-month window provides the Tribe an opportunity to file an amended lawsuit challenging the legality of the pending environmental report and request an injunction to stop the land exchange until the merits of our case are settled.'
"The Oak Flat land transfer was mandated by a last-minute amendment to the FY2015 #NationalDefenseAuthorizationAct that was added by the late Arizona Senator #JohnMcCain and former Arizona Senator #JeffFlake. The land transfer provision, which failed to pass Congress in previous years, avoided the normal course of business and was not debated before it was added to the mustsign [#NDAA] defense spending bill that was signed into law by President Barack #Obama.
" 'The bill that authorized the land exchange is not in the best interest of the American people, Arizona or the San Carlos Apache Tribe,' Chairman Rambler stated. 'We have filed this lawsuit because of our concerns of the mine’s massive use of groundwater, which will be devastating for both Arizona
and eventually the Tribe. We are also deeply concerned about the environmental destruction and the obliteration of Oak Flat will have on Apache culture and religion.'"Resolution plans to collapse Oak Flat, known as Chi’chil Biłdagoteel in Apache, into a two-mile wide, 1,100-foot-deep crater. Chi’chil Biłdagoteel is listed in the National Register of Historic Places as a Traditional Cultural Place.
"Resolution Copper is owned by Melbourne-based #BHP (45%) and London-based #RioTinto (55%), the two largest mining companies in the world. The Chinese state-owned Aluminum Corporation of China, which spearheads China’s acquisition of strategic minerals worldwide, is Rio Tinto’s single largest investor with a 14.6% stake. Both BHP and Rio Tinto rely on China for the majority of their revenue.
" 'We fully expect Resolution’s copper to be exported to China, which poses a national security threat,' Chairman Rambler said. “The United States already exports 30 percent of the copper produced by U.S. mines because of a lack of copper smelting capacity.
"'The Trump Administration’s Oak Flat appraisal concludes that Resolution’s copper will be exported to southeast Asia,' Chairman Rambler added. 'It’s clearly in the best interest of the United States to withhold publication of the Resolution environmental report at least until there is a change in the ownership of this project to companies that are not reliant on China for more than half their business.' "
Source:
https://bsnorrell.blogspot.com/2025/06/san-carlos-apache-tribe-federal-court.html#Fight4OurExistence #ProtectOakFlat #LandBack #sacredland #OakFlat
#SaveOakFlat #SanCarlosApache #Apache #ReligiousLiberty #NativeAmericans #FirstNations #CensoredNews #ReaderSupportedNews
#ProtectTheSacred #ApacheStronghold #NativeAmericanNews #NativeAmericans #RioTinto #CopperMining #Arizona #LeaveItInTheGround #ChichilBildagoteel #WesternApaches #BecketLaw #ResolutionCopper #USPol #MiningTheSacred #NationalForests #CorporateLandGrabs #CorporateColonialism #CulturalGenocide #McCainShame -
We live in a f*cked up world when #Republican #SCOTUS members are the only ones who do the right thing. WTF!
BREAKING! Supreme Court Refuses Plea to #ProtectOakFlat
#ApacheStronghold said it will continue the fight in the courts
#WendslerNosieSr. said, "While this decision is a heavy blow, our struggle is far from over. We urge Congress to take decisive action to stop this injustice while we press forward in the courts."By Becket Law, Censored News, May 27, 2025
WASHINGTON – "The Supreme Court today refused to protect a Western Apache sacred site, #OakFlat, from destruction by a Chinese-owned mining giant. In Apache Stronghold v. United States, a coalition of Apaches, other Native peoples, and non-Native allies will now continue to fight in court to
stop the government from transferring Oak Flat to #ResolutionCopper and turning the site into a massive mining
crater, ending Apache religious practices forever."#JusticeGorsuch, joined by #JusticeThomas, dissented from the Court’s refusal to hear the appeal,
saying that the Court’s 'decision to shuffle this case off our docket without a full airing is a grievous mistake—one with consequences that threaten to reverberate for generations.'"Since time immemorial, Western Apaches and other Native peoples have gathered at Oak Flat, outside of present-day Superior, Arizona, for sacred religious ceremonies that cannot take place anywhere else."
Read more:
https://bsnorrell.blogspot.com/2025/05/supreme-court-refuses-plea-to-protect.htmlLink to PDF (with Gorsuch's full dissention):
https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/24pdf/24-291_5i26.pdf
#Fight4OurExistence #SCOTUS #ProtectOakFlat #LandBack #sacredland #OakFlat
#SaveOakFlat #SanCarlosApache #Apache #ReligiousLiberty #NativeAmericans #FirstNations #CensoredNews #ReaderSupportedNews
#ProtectOakFlat #ProtectTheSacred #ApacheStronghold #NativeAmericanNews #NativeAmericans #RioTinto #CopperMining #Arizona #LeaveItInTheGround #ChichilBildagoteel #WesternApaches #BecketLaw -
#ApacheStronghold: Fight For Existence Podcast 'A Halted Land Transfer, A Continued Fight'
"U.S. #SupremeCourt: May 22 is the next possible date for considering the case
"The federal district court in Phoenix has issued an injunction, halting the land transfer of Apaches Ceremonial Place of Oak Flat -- which is targeted to be destroyed by a copper mine -- until the U.S. Supreme Court hears the case."
Source:
https://bsnorrell.blogspot.com/2025/05/apache-stronghold-fight-for-existence.htmlFight for Our Existence podcast, Episode 32 is now available!
Apache Stronghold: A Halted Land Transfer, A Continued Fight
Now streaming on all platforms!
https://linktr.ee/Fight4ourexistenceYT: https://www.youtube.com/@fight4ourexistencepodcast912
#Fight4OurExistence #SCOTUS #ProtectOakFlat #LandBack #NativePodcast #sacredland #OakFlat
#SaveOakFlat #SanCarlosApache
#Apache #ReligiousLiberty
#NativeAmericans #FirstNations #CensoredNews #ReaderSupportedNews
#ProtectOakFlat #ProtectTheSacred #ApacheStronghold #NativeAmericanNews #NativeAmericans #RioTinto #CopperMining #Arizona #LeaveItInTheGround #ChichilBildagoteel #WesternApaches #BecketLaw -
Plundering and polluting for profit regardless of the human, social & environmental consequences.
#OakFlat is a sacred place to the Western #Apache, #Yavapai, #O’odham, #Hopi, and #Zuni. It is a place where rituals are performed, and resources are gathered; its loss would be an indescribable hardship to those peoples.”
#BHP (aka Bloody Huge Polluter) #RioTinto (aka Rio Stinko)
#Capitalism -
#Apaches ask lower court to stop government’s imminent transfer of #SacredSite
Becket Law, via #CensoredNews, April 25, 2025
There will be a Hearing May 7, 2025 @ 0930 @ Sandra Day O’Connor
U.S. Courthouse, 401 West Washington Street, Phoenix, Arizona 85003WASHINGTON – "A coalition of #WesternApaches, other #NativePeoples, and non-Native #allies asked a federal court late yesterday to stop the U.S. government from handing over their sacred site at Oak Flat to a multinational mining giant as early as June 16, 2025.
"In #ApacheStronghold v. United States, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals last year refused to stop the federal government from transferring #OakFlat to #ResolutionCopper, a Chinese-owned mining company that plans to turn the site into a massive mining crater, ending Apache religious practices forever (Watch the short video linked below to learn more).
"The emergency appeal comes after the government announced last week it will forge ahead with the transfer even though the case is currently under consideration by the #USSupremeCourt."
Read more:
https://bsnorrell.blogspot.com/2025/04/apaches-ask-lower-court-to-stop.htmlVideo link:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zh68xOn0B_8#SaveOakFlat #ChichilBiłdagoteel #CorporateColonialism #ProtectOakFlat #ReaderSupportedNews #SCOTUS #DefendTheSacred #CopperMine
#WaterIsLife #RioTinto #RecycleCopper #CulturalGenocide #NDAA #WesternApache #SacredSites #NoMiningWithoutConsent #RecycleCopper #TontoNationalForest -
Breaking News! (via @bsnorrell.blogspot.com )
Feds Charge Ahead with Plan to Destroy #OakFlat
#SupremeCourt poised to consider #ApacheStronghold’s appeal
By Becket Law, Censored News, April 17, 2025
WASHINGTON – "The U.S. government today announced that it is forging ahead with plans to transfer a #NativeAmerican #SacredSite to a multinational mining giant in as few as 60 days, despite a
federal lawsuit challenging the action as illegal."In Apache Stronghold v. United States, Apache Stronghold—a coalition of #Apaches, other Native peoples, and non-Native allies—sued to stop the federal government from transferring Oak Flat to
Resolution Copper, a Chinese-owned mining company that plans to turn the site into a massive mining crater, ending Apache religious practices forever."The government has announced it will now forge ahead with the transfer even though the case is currently under consideration by the U.S. Supreme Court.
"Since time immemorial, #WesternApaches and other Native peoples have gathered at Oak Flat, outside of present-day #SuperiorAZ, for sacred religious ceremonies that cannot take place anywhere else. Known in Apache as Chi’chil Biłdagoteel, Oak Flat is listed in the #NationalRegisterOfHistoricPlaces and has been protected from #mining and other harmful practices for decades.
These protections were targeted in December 2014 when a last-minute provision was slipped into a must-pass defense bill [#NDAA] authorizing the transfer of Oak Flat to the Resolution Copper company."#ResolutionCopper now plans to turn the sacred site into a two-mile-wide and 1,100-foot-deep crater.
"The majority owner of Resolution Copper, Rio Tinto, sparked international outrage when it deliberately destroyed 46,000-year-old Indigenous rock shelters at one of Australia’s most significant cultural sites.
" 'The feds are barreling ahead to give Oak Flat to Resolution Copper, even as the Supreme Court considers whether to hear the case,' said Luke Goodrich, vice president and senior counsel at Becket. 'This makes the stakes crystal clear: if the Court doesn’t act now, Oak Flat could be transferred and destroyed before justice can be served.' "
Read more:
https://bsnorrell.blogspot.com/2025/04/feds-charge-ahead-with-plan-to-destroy.html#SaveOakFlat #ChichilBiłdagoteel #CorporateColonialism #ProtectOakFlat #ReaderSupportedNews #SCOTUS #DefendTheSacred #CopperMine
#WaterIsLife #ResolutionCopper #RioTinto #RecycleCopper #CulturalGenocide #NoMiningWithoutConsent #RecycleCopper #TontoNationalForest -
#KleeBenally's on his cover of the #TomWaits song "Earth Died Screaming."
"#Climatechange is a consequence of the war against #MotherEarth.
The #greenwashing of #capitalism and #colonialism perpetuates the nightmare of #ecocide and #genocide of #IndigenousPeoples."#LithiumMining is intensifying to meet demand of 'green' #EV cars. This means further targeting and destruction of #Indigenous #SacredLands and water. Support #Hualapai & #Shoshone (and beyond!) resistance to lithium mining.
From mining, transport, milling, and waste, 'clean/green' #Nuclear energy is a deadly lie. There are more than 10,000 abandoned uranium throughout the so-called US that have been left to permanently contaminate our communities with deadly #radioactive pollution. There is also no permanent plan to deal with the highly radioactive waste from nuclear power generation. #YuccaMountain, a sacred site for #WesternShoshone, is still being considered for a national nuclear waste repository.
"For wind turbines, solar panels, and electric vehicles, #ResolutionCopper proclaims that they desperately need to mine the copper beneath #OakFlat, a sacred site for #SanCarlosApache.
"We can't ignore the brutal impacts associated with the sourcing of necessary metals and minerals needed to
'sustain' unsustainable ways of life."#GreenCapitalists and #colonizers dream, while the Earth dies screaming."
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iMrBYnKo9v4
http://www.the-ciej.org
http://www.indigenousaction.org
http://www.HaulNo.com
http://www.dinenonukes.org
http://www.cleanupthemines.org#DefendTheSacred #DefendMotherEarth #ClimateChange #NoNukes #NoNewNukes #RethinkNotRestart #NoUraniumMining #NoMiningWithoutConsent #CulturalGenocide #Genocide #RestInPowerKleeBenally #FridayNightMusicVideos
#FridayNightMusic #MusicForActivism #MusicForResistance -
#OakFlat Update on #USSupremeCourt case!
By #ApacheStronghold, December 16, 2024
Supreme Court update
"Thank you to all of our supporters who are continuing to pray about our #SupremeCourt petition to #ProtectOakFlat. As you may know, the Supreme Court considered our petition for the second time at its conference on December 13, 2024. Since we did not receive notice about it’s decision to take the case, the Court intends to consider it again at its next conference on January 10, 2025. Under that schedule, we could hear on January 10 or 13 whether the Court will take our case. Or the Court may take additional time for further consideration.
"Either way, we take this as an encouraging sign that the Court is devoting extra time to our case and giving it careful examination. We ask all of our supporters to continue praying that the Justices will agree to hear our case and protect Oak Flat—just as the sacred places of other faiths have long been protected throughout the country.
Thank you again for your support."
Source:
http://www.apache-stronghold.com/Direct link to PDF:
http://users.neo.registeredsite.com/8/3/2/11897238/assets/2024-12-16_Dr_Nosie_2nd_relist_statement.pdf
#SaveOakFlat #SCOTUS #ProtectOakFlat #ReaderSupportedNews #DefendTheSacred #CopperMine
#WaterIsLife #ResolutionCopper #RioTinto #RecycleCopper #CorporateColonialism #PrayerRide #CulturalGenocide -
#OakFlat Update on #USSupremeCourt case!
By #ApacheStronghold, via #CensoredNews, December 9, 2024
"Thank you to all of our supporters who are continuing to pray about our Supreme Court petition to protect Oak Flat. As you may know, the Supreme Court considered our petition for the first time at its conference on December 6, 2024.
"However, we received word today that the Court intends to consider it again at the Court’s next conference on December 13, 2024. Under that schedule, we could hear on December 13 or 16 whether the Court will take our case. Or the Court may take additional time for further consideration.
"Either way, we take this as an encouraging sign that the Court is devoting extra time to our case and giving it careful examination. We ask all of our supporters to continue praying that the Justices will agree to hear our case and protect Oak Flat—just as the sacred places of other faiths have long been protected throughout the country. Thank you again for your support."
Source:
https://bsnorrell.blogspot.com/2024/12/apache-stronghold-us-supreme-court.htmlDonate:
https://www.gofundme.com/f/stand-with-apache-stronghold-protect-sacred-sitesMore info:
http://www.apache-stronghold.com#SaveOakFlat #SCOTUS #ProtectOakFlat #ReaderSupportedNews #DefendTheSacred #CopperMine
#WaterIsLife #ResolutionCopper #RioTinto #RecycleCopper #CorporateColonialism #PrayerRide #CulturalGenocide -
#OakFlat Update on #USSupremeCourt case!
by #ApacheStronghold, via #CensoredNews, December 6, 2024
"Thank you to all of our supporters who are continuing to pray about Supreme Court petition to protect Oak Flat. Our case was not mentioned in today's Supreme Court orders list. However, we may get a decision by the Court to take our case by Monday 7:30 a.m. Central time. We will update you again on Monday morning.
We will take this an encouraging sign that the Court is devoting extra time to our case and giving it careful examination. We ask all of our supporters to continue praying the the Justices will agree to hear our case the protect Oak Flat -- just as the sacred places of other faiths have lon been protected through the country. Thank you again for your support."
https://bsnorrell.blogspot.com/2024/12/apache-stronghold-update-on-us-supreme.html
#SaveOakFlat #SCOTUS #ProtectOakFlat #ReaderSupportedNews
#DefendTheSacred #CopperMine
#WaterIsLife #ResolutionCopper #RioTinto #RecycleCopper #CorporateColonialism
#PrayerRide #CulturalGenocide -
U.S. Supreme Court to Consider #ApacheStronghold's Case to #SaveOakFlat in December
By Brenda Norrell, Censored News, Nov. 22, 2024
WASHINGTON -- "The U.S. Supreme Court will likely consider Apache Stronghold's case on December 6, Apache Stronghold said today. The U.S. government plans to turn Apaches ceremonial place Oak Flat over to an international mining giant to destroy it with a massive copper mine that would poison the land and water.
Apache Stronghold said if the Supreme Court considers the case on December 6, they could hear on December 9 whether the high court will take the case, or it could take more time to consider it."'Either way, we take this as an encouraging sign that the Court is devoting extra time to our case and
giving it careful examination. We ask all of our supporters to continue praying that the justices will agree to hear our case and protect Oak Flat -- just as the sacred places of other faiths have long
been protected throughout the country,' Apache Stronghold said today."The Supreme Court had scheduled to consider the case for review on November 22, but rescheduled the case for December 6.
"Apache Stronghold's Wendsler Nosie, Sr. pointed out that a writ of certiorari would order the lower court to forward all documents on the case to the U.S. Supreme Court. However, the Supreme Court is selective and only hears cases when at least four of the justices believe the case raises a significant federal question that is in the public interest."
Read more:
https://bsnorrell.blogspot.com/2024/11/us-supreme-court-to-review-apache.html#ReaderSupportedNews #ProtectOakFlat #DefendTheSacred #SCOTUS #CopperMine #WaterIsLife #OakFlat #ResolutionCopper #RioTinto #RecycleCopper #CorporateColonialism #PrayerRide #CulturalGenocide
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So, I heard about this on the news. And I shouted out loud, "#ThackerPass! #OakFlat! #WhiteMesa! Ha'Kamwe'!" I mean, it's great to embrace #TruthAndReconciliation, especially when it comes to #BoardingSchools -- but not when your administration is targeting sacred places for destructive, extractive mining and processing of radioactive materials -- which will affect #FirstNations who live nearby!
'A sin on our soul': Biden delivers formal apology for Native boarding school abuses
by Debra Utacia Krol
October 25, 2024"#Biden delivered the apology on tribal lands south of Phoenix in what could be his last visit to Arizona as president. Before leaving Washington on Thursday, he called the apology 'something that should have been done a long time ago.' He was accompanied by Interior Secretary #DebHaaland, a member of the Laguna Pueblo and the first Indigenous Cabinet secretary."
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#Colombia's #Indigenous Demand #AncestralKnowledge is at Forefront of #COP16 #Biodiversity Convention
Indigenous communities from different regions of Colombia march in the southwestern city of #Cali to demand that their ancestral knowledge on #conservation be taken into account at the #UNBiodiversity summit, COP16, which is being held in the city.
Article by #BrendaNorrell, #CensoredNews, Oct. 24, 2024
"The United States is the only United Nations member state that has not ratified the Convention on #Biodiversity. While 197 countries arrive in Cali, Colombia for the COP16 Biodiversity Convention, the U.S. is engaged in #WarCrimes and #genocide in #Palestine.
"In the U.S., the team of #Biden and Interior Sec. #DebHaaland plans to desecrate the #Hualapai's sacred ceremonial water with a #LithiumMine; is promoting #LithiumMining digging into the #Paiute Massacre Site at #ThackerPass; is allowing #UraniumMining in the #GrandCanyon threatening Havasupai's aquifer and poisoning their #MedicinePlants with #radioactive dust; allowing #dumping radioactive ore and global radioactive waste in #WhiteMesaUte's community; is bulldozing the ancient village sites, burial places and medicine plants of #TohonoOodham and #SanCarlosApache for a wind energy project; plans a massive #CopperMine from San Carlos #Apache sacred #OakFlat; and plans to increase the radioactivity in the #Pueblo homelands with increased #plutonium production and storage at #LosAlamos Labs in northern #NewMexico."
Read more, view photos:
https://bsnorrell.blogspot.com/2024/10/colombias-indigenous-demand-ancestral.htmlWatch video by AFP: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AWUjFLE1AY4
#WaterIsLife #ProtectTheSacred #SaveOakFlat #RioTinto #HaKamwe #Greenwashing #CorporateColonialism #NoOpenPitMining #WhiteMesaMill #CulturalGenocide #RecycleLithium #RecycleCopper #ToxicWaste #NuclearWaste #FirstNations #NuclearWeapons #ReaderSupportedNews #HaulNo #DefendTheSacred
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The Silent Killers in #IndianCountry: #Copper, #Lithium, #Uranium and #Plutonium
Judge finds plutonium plants in #NewMexico and #SouthCarolina violated environmental laws
By #BrendaNorrell, #CensoredNews, Oct. 10, 2024
"The U.S. government's plan for increased plutonium production at #LosAlamos National Laboratory, in the heart of Pueblo lands in northern New Mexico, has been delayed by a federal judge.
"Continuing the U.S. legacy of poisoning Indian country with #radiation, this comes as the U.S. government is granting leases to foreign #mining companies targeting Native #sacred lands and communities.
"#CopperMining is targeting San CarlosApache's sacred #OakFlat; #Hualapai are suing the US Department of Interior to halt lithium mining at their sacred spring Ha'Kamwe'; and the U.S. government is promoting the ongoing digging into the #Paiute Massacre Site in northern Nevada for #lithium, in violation of all federal laws that protect Native religious and historic sites, the environment and endangered species.
"Uranium mining in the Grand Canyon threatens #Havasupai's aquifer, the haul route endangers everyone in the Four Corners region, and the uranium mill at White Mesa Ute in #Utah is poisoning #Utes.
"Interior Sec. #DebHaaland said in Farmington, N.M., that Los Alamos Labs would be the leader in the so-called '#GreenEnergy transition' in the #FourCorners region.
"More than 500 radioactive #UraniumMill sites remain on the #NavajoNation that have not been cleaned up by the U.S. #EPA, which deceives the public by announcing plans and promises to clean up the #ColdWar sites.
"In the current federal lawsuit, a federal judge in South Carolina ruled that U.S. energy officials illegally neglected to study impacts to the #environment in efforts to increase plutonium production for nuclear weapons in New Mexico and South Carolina.
"'South Carolina District Court Judge Mary Geiger Lewis sided with environmental, #AntiNuclear proliferation and community groups last week who sued the National Nuclear Security Administration (#NNSA), which oversees the nuclear weapons stockpile as part of the U.S. Department of Energy [#DOE],' reports Source New Mexico.
"The U.S. is investing billions into restarting the manufacture of #PlutoniumPits, the grapefruit-sized spheres developed for #nuclear weapons. The plutonium is produced from uranium.
"'The federal government halted its manufacturing program at the #RockyFlatsPlant in #Colorado in 1989 after an FBI raid due to safety concerns and #EnvironmentalCrimes,' Source New Mexico reports.
"The U.S. government's #AtomicBombTesting in #Nevada left a trail of cancer and death for #WesternShoshone. The documentary 'Downwind' reveals the truth.
"'This is a very serious issue and that's why I can't let it go. I can't move on. People say, 'oh, why don't you just let it go?' Because it's killing my family. It's killing my land. It's killing my people. And that will not stand. It's being done in secret. And killing Indians in secret will not stand,' said Ian Zabarte, Principal Man of the Western Bands of the #ShoshoneNation of Indians. Zabarte is featured in '#Downwind' about radiation poisoning from U.S. #NuclearTests.
"Currently, foreign companies -- which receive the profits and find it easy to avoid clean up and responsibility for #environmental crimes and deaths from #cancer -- are receiving the mining leases from the U.S. government. The leases are granted by the U.S. Interior's Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and in the case of #UraniumMining in the #GrandCanyon, it is the USDA's Forestry Service. #Biden's attorneys have joined the lawsuit with #RioTinto to devastate #OakFlat.
"Australian and Canadian mining corporations are devastating Native lands and communities, poisoning the water and causing widespread cancer.
Rio Tinto, targeting Apaches #OakFlat, is an Australian company which destroyed 46,000 years of #Aboriginal sacred history in caves in #Australia."Another Australian mining company is targeting #Hualapai's sacred site. It is #Hawstone / #ArizonaLithium, in Perth, Australia.
"#EnergyFuels, now uranium mining in the Grand Canyon, and operating the uranium mill at #WhiteMesaUte, is a Canadian company. Another Canadian company is digging into the #Paiute Massacre Site. It is #LithiumAmericas.
#Hopi judge #DianeHumetewa granted a temporary restraining order to halt the lithium mining at #Hualapai's sacred spring."Read more:
https://bsnorrell.blogspot.com/2024/10/the-silent-killers-in-indian-country.html#NoUraniumMining #CopperMining #LithiumMining #NoMiningWithoutConsent #EnvironmentalRacism #NoWar #NoNukes #NuclearWeapons #RecycleCopper #RecycleLithium #WaterIsLife #NuclearWaste #DefendTheSacred #WhiteMesaMill #Ute #AtomicBomb #CulturalGenocide #Genocide #FirstNations #NativeAmericanNews #SuperfundSites #ToxicWaste #SaveOakFlat #OpenPitMining #Pollution #ReaderSupportedNews
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Federal Judge #DianeHumetewa, #Hopi, is First to Halt Interior Sec. #DebHaaland's #Lithium Drilling Permits in #Native #Ceremonial Places
By #BrendaNorrell, #CensoredNews, Sept. 18, 2024
"Federal Judge Diane Humetewa, Hopi, is the first federal judge to halt the lithium permits being given out by Interior Sec. Deb Haaland. Humetewa granted a temporary restraining order halting an Australian company's lithium drilling at #Hualapai's Sacred Spring.
"Now, U.S. District Judge Humetewa will rule on whether to make it permanent. Humetewa is the first to ask attorneys to submit arguments concerning the federal laws that protect historic and archaeological sites and the environment.
"Judge Humetewa gave lawyers on both sides until next Tuesday to summarize their arguments and more specifically respond to questions she asked about the government’s compliance with the #NationalHistoricPreservationAct and the #NationalEnvironmentalPolicyAct.
"#Biden's Justice Dept attorneys joined the drillers in court to argue for the drilling to proceed. And the #NavajoTransitionalEnergyCompany, a tribal enterprise in Farmington, NM, plans to do the drilling. CEO #VernLund has joined the board of the Australian-owned company #Hawkstone / #ArizonaLithium of Perth, Australia.
"In a separate case, the #TohonoOodham and #SanCarlosApache have filed a lawsuit against Interior Sec. Haaland for the bulldozers now destroying ancient village sites, #burial places and #MedicineGrounds in southern #Arizona. A Tucson federal judge refused to halt the destruction by the #SunZia Transmission Lines, for a wind energy project that plans to take electricity from New Mexico to California. The wind energy company, #PattenEnergy, is owned by the #CanadianPensionFund.
"The lithium drilling continues at the #Paiute Massacre Site in northern Nevada by the Canadian-owned #LithiumAmericas / #LithiumNevada. #Paiute and #Shoshone elderly and mothers have been charged in a court case for defending the grounds where their ancestors remain. #Haaland said she supports the #LithiumMining.
"#ApacheStronghold filed a case before the U.S. #SupremeCourt [#SCOTUS] this week, to halt the planned destruction of their ceremonial place, #OakFlat in Arizona, targeted for a massive copper mine by Australia's #RioTinto and #BHP, and pushed by the Biden administration. Rio Tinto already blew up 46,000 years of sacred #Aboriginal teachings in caves in #Australia. Rio Tinto was forced to admit widespread sexual attacks in its mines, with the highest number in Australia and #SouthAfrica."
Source:
https://bsnorrell.blogspot.com/2024/09/federal-judge-humetewa-hopi-is-first-to.html#DefendTheSacred #ReaderSupportedNews #NoMiningWithoutConsent #NoLithiumMining #EnvironmentalRacism #environment #Greenwashing #EVs #WaterIsLife #NoLithiumMiningWithoutConsent #HumanRights #WaterIsLife #HumanRightsDefenders #IndigenousActivists #CorporateColonialism #SaveOakFlat
#CulturalGenocide #EnvironmentalRacism #ExtractiveMining -
#ApacheStronghold Asks #SupremeCourt to #SaveOakFlat
By Becket Law, via #CensoredNews
Sept. 11, 2024WASHINGTON – "A coalition of #WesternApaches, other #Native peoples, and non-Native #allies asked the #SupremeCourt today to protect their sacred site at #OakFlat from destruction by a multinational mining giant. In Apache Stronghold v. United States, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals refused to stop the federal government from transferring Oak Flat to #ResolutionCopper, a foreign-owned mining company that plans to turn the site into a massive mining crater, ending #Apache religious practices forever (Watch video linked below to learn more).
"The Apaches and their allies hosted a day of prayer outside the Court as they asked the Justices to save the spiritual lifeblood of their people.
Since time immemorial, Western Apaches and other Native peoples have gathered at Oak Flat, outside of present-day Superior, Arizona, for sacred religious ceremonies that cannot take place anywhere else. Known in Apache as Chi’chil Biłdagoteel, Oak Flat is listed in the National Register of Historic Places and has been protected from mining and other harmful practices for decades. These protections were targeted in December 2014 when a last-minute provision was inserted into a must- pass defense bill authorizing the transfer of Oak Flat to the Resolution Copper company. Resolution Copper is a foreign-owned mining company that plans to turn the sacred site into a two-mile-wide and 1,100-foot-deep crater. The majority owner of Resolution Copper, #RioTinto, sparked international outrage when it deliberately destroyed 46,000-year-old #Indigenous rock shelters at one of #Australia’s most significant cultural sites.“'Oak Flat is our Mt. Sinai—the most sacred place where generations of Apache have come to connect with our Creator, our faith, and our land,' said Dr. Wendsler Nosie Sr. of Apache Stronghold. 'We pray the Justices will protect Oak Flat and ensure that our place of worship is not treated differently simply because it lacks four walls and a steeple.”
Apache Stronghold—a coalition of Apaches, other Native peoples, and non-Native allies—filed this lawsuit in January 2021 seeking to halt the proposed mine at Oak Flat. The mine is opposed by 21 of 22 federally recognized tribal nations in Arizona and by the National Congress of American Indians. Meanwhile, national polling indicates that 74% of Americans support protecting Oak Flat. The Ninth Circuit ruled earlier this year that the land transfer is not subject to federal laws protecting religious freedom. But five judges dissented, writing that the court 'tragically err[ed]' by refusing to protect Oak Flat. After unsuccessfully asking all 29 judges on the Ninth Circuit to rehear the case, Apache Stronghold has filed their appeal to the Supreme Court."'Blasting the birthplace of Apache religion into oblivion would be an egregious violation of our nation’s promise of religious freedom for people of all faiths,' said Luke Goodrich, vice president and senior counsel at Becket. 'The Court should uphold its strong record of defending #ReligiousFreedom by ensuring that the Apaches can continue worshiping at Oak Flat as they have for centuries.'
"In addition to Becket, Apache Stronghold is represented by Erin Murphy of Clement & Murphy PLLC, Professor Stephanie Barclay of Georgetown Law School, and attorneys Michael V. Nixon and Clifford Levenson.
For more information or to arrange an interview, contact Ryan Colby at [email protected] or 202-349-7219."Source:
https://bsnorrell.blogspot.com/2024/09/apache-stronghold-asks-supreme-court-to.htmlLegal document:
https://www.becketlaw.org/media/breaking-apache-stronghold-asks-supreme-court-to-save-oak-flat/Video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zh68xOn0B_8#SCOTUS #CopperMine
#ProtectOakFlat
#ProtectTheSacred
#DefendTheSacred
#IndigenousActivism
#SaveOakFlat
#WaterIsLife
#SacredSite
#CopperMining
#RecycleCopper
#NoMiningWithoutConsent
#CulturalGenocide
#Ecocide #NativeAmericanNews
#CorporateColonialism
#WashingtonDC
#PrayerRide
#PeacefulProtest
#FightForReligiousRights
#ChichilBildagoteel -
#ApacheStronghold website, where you can find out about events, news, petitions, actions, and support them by donating or buying merch (T-shirts, yard signs, posters, buttons and stickers)!
TAKE ACTION NOW!
Chi'chil Biłdagoteel (#OakFlat) is a sacred site in the Tonto National Forest for the #SanCarlosApache and other Native American Tribes in the region—a place to pray, collect water and medicinal plants, gather acorns, honor the people who are buried there, and perform sacred religious ceremonies. Oak Flat is listed on the National Register of Historic Places as a Traditional Cultural Property and protected from mining since 1955 by President Eisenhower."#Resolution’s underground mine would cause Oak Flat to collapse into a mile-wide, 1,000-foot-deep crater. In 2014, the US government promised the land to foreign copper mining interests to build a copper mine. The #ResolutionCopper Project would create one of the largest copper mines in the US destroying this sacred site.
SUPPORTING APACHE STRONGHOLD AT THE U.S. SUPREME COURT
Apache Stronghold is grateful for the outpouring of support for our efforts to protect Oak Flat.
Support Apache Stronghold #PrayerJourney to the #SupremeCourt
http://www.apache-stronghold.com/take-action.html
#CopperMine #ProtectOakFlat #protectthesacred #DefendTheSacred #IndigenousActivism #SaveOakFlat #WaterIsLife #SacredSite #CopperMining #RecycleCopper #NoMiningWithoutConsent #ProtectTheSacred #CulturalGenocide #Ecocide #NativeAmericanNews #CorporateColonialism #WashingtonDC #PrayerRide #PeacefulProtest #FightForReligiousRights #ChichilBildagoteel
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[Thread] The next installment from #KleeBenally 's book, #NoSpiritualSurrender.
“The proposition of unplugging from a ‘dirty’ power source and plugging into a ‘green’ one does nothing to address the underlying power relations. It reinforces them.
“‘#GreenEnergy’ sustaining a Green Economy still demands resource #colonialism. From sacred #OakFlat in so-called Arizona where #SanCarlosApache are resisting a massive mine that is estimated to contain enough #copper ore to produce 275 million electric vehicles [#EVs], to sacred #ThackerPass in so-called Nevada where #Shoshone are resisting #LithiumMining, which is necessary for electric vehicle and ‘green’ energy battery production. A single car #LithiumIon battery pack contains 18 pounds of lithium. To electrify every vehicle throughout the world, an estimated 10.4 billion tons of lithium is needed, that is approximately 13 times the existing lithium reserves. The Thacker Pass lithium one is mismated to produce 60,000 tons annually. The proposed project spans approximately 28 square miles that would hold an #OpenPit and a #sulfuricacid processing plant to extract lithium from mined ore.
"The operation is estimated to release 152,713 tons of #CarbonDioxide [#CO2] annually and 400,000 gallons of #water is required for each ton of lithium meaning it will use 1.7 billion gallons annual. The Thacker Pass sulfuric acid processing plant will convert sulfur to leech lithium from raw ore, turned in from sources such as the #AlbertaTarSands, which are 1,500 miles away. The tar sands, located in so-called Canada, are known as the world’s most destructive oil operation.”
Page 138-139
#IndigenousAnarchy
#Ecosystem #DefendTheSacred
#CorporateColonialism #NoDAPL #CriminalizingDissent #WaterIsLife #ClimateDefenders #NoCopperMiningWithoutConsent #NoLithiumMining #CorporateColonialism #NoMiningWithoutConsent #LithiumMining #CopperMining #Greenwashing -
#ApacheStronghold at Peehee Mu'huh Locked Gates for People of Prayer
On the Journey to the Supreme Court
By Apache Stronghold, #CensoredNews
August 8, 2024"Apache Stronghold visited Peehee Mu’huh (#ThackerPass), the second stop on the Prayer Journey to the Supreme Court [#SCOTUS] to Stop the Shattering of Human Existence and Protect #MotherEarth.
"We visited with the People of #RedMountain, who are fighting a #LithiumMine that is destroying their #SacredSite. When we arrived at the entrance to Peehee Mu’huh, we found a chain link wall with a locked gate, blocking everyone except those authorized by the mine.
"Security trucks came to go through the gate, and one of the drivers admitted that they knew the Apache Stronghold would be there with the People of Red Mountain.
"One truck drove off toward the mine, while the other driver re-locked the gate and left, emphasizing that the mining company has access to Peehee Mu’huh, but the Indigenous people who were stewards of the land since time immemorial, and all others who would go there to pray, are locked out.
"Dr. Wendsler Nosie Sr. said, 'It’s a sad reminder that people don’t know the day could come, if #OakFlat is ever transferred to #ResolutionCopper, that the acorns, #MedicinePlants, and water could be locked away behind a gate facing death at the hands of a corporation.
"'People need to come together to stop this desecration happening at Peehee Mu’huh and prevent it from happening everywhere else, before it’s too late.'
"Costanoan Rumsen #CarmelTribe said, 'We are honored to welcome and pray along side the Apache Stronghold and Protect Oak Flat on their Prayer Journey. Please join us in prayer this Saturday from 7 am-12 noon.' Chief Ya'anna Learning Village and Tuatukar Eco-Cultural Center for Indigenous Regeneration, 4500 Via Marisol, #Los AngelesCalifornia 90042.
"For those who can’t join us in person, please pray for us as we travel to the Supreme Court, and follow along on the journey here.
https://bsnorrell.blogspot.com/2024/08/apache-stronghold-at-peehee-muhuh.html
#PeeHeeMuhuh #NoCopperMiningWithoutConsent #IndigenousPeoples #IndigenousNews #RioTinto CopperMine #BHP #Apache #NDAA #BigMountain #CulturalGenocide #Genocide #Arizona #ChichilBildagoteel #RioTinto #CopperMine #SanCarlosApache #Arizona #ProtectOakFlat #protectthesacred #DefendTheSacred #IndigenousActivism #SaveOakFlat #WaterIsLife #SacredSite #CopperMining #RecycleCopper #MiningWithoutConsent #ProtectTheSacred #CulturalGenocide #Ecocide #NativeAmericanNews #Greenwashing #NoMiningWithoutConsent #CorporateColonialism #PeacefulProtest
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[Film] The #ApacheStronghold defending #sacred #OakFlat land from a #CopperMine
The Real News Network
May 21, 2024"In the heart of the #Arizona high desert lies a battle for the soul of the land. The ancient, sacred grounds of #Apache #Native territory are under threat from a looming giant — a massive copper mine that promises riches for the locals, and a pathway to the so-called green transition. But, as is often the case, it comes at a cost.
"The #SanCarlosApache tribe calls it Chi’chil Bildagoteel; English speakers call it Oak Flat. It sits on a mountainous plateau within a 17.3-kilometer oasis in the #TontoNationalForest. #RioTinto and #BHP, two of the world’s biggest mining companies, have staked their claim here through a joint venture called #ResolutionCopper. For over 10 years they’ve been lobbying governments for the right to build a colossal mine that would cover roughly 7,000 acres of surface area, and extend more than a mile into the ground.
"The only thing that stands in their way is the #resistance of the Apache Stronghold, a nonprofit community organization of #Natives and non-Natives uniting to counter ongoing #colonization, defend holy sites and protect freedom of religion, which was created to protect Chi’chil Bildagoteel.
"A short film by #BrandiMorin and #GeordieDay for #RicochetMedia. Support for this journalism provided by #CulturalSurvival."
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vCIGlv0xu_U
#ChichilBildagoteel #RioTinto #CopperMine #SanCarlosApache #Arizona #ProtectOakFlat #protectthesacred #DefendTheSacred #IndigenousActivism #SCOTUS #SaveOakFlat
#WaterIsLife #SacredSite #CopperMining #RecycleCopper #MiningWithoutConsent
#ProtectTheSacred #CulturalGenocide #Ecocide #NativeAmericanNews
#IndigenousNews
#Greenwashing #NoMiningWithoutConsent #CorporateColonialism -
via #CensoredNews
New Film! #ApacheStronghold Protecting #OakFlat from #CopperMine
The #Apache stronghold standing in the way of a copper mine that would desecrate a #SacredSite
By Ricochet Media
Watch now: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hZucwkizByk"In the heart of the #Arizona high desert lies a battle for the soul of the land. The ancient, sacred grounds of Apache Native territory are under threat from a looming giant — a massive copper mine that promises riches for the locals, and a pathway to the so-called green transition. But, as is often the case, it comes at a cost.
"The #SanCarlosApache tribe calls it Chi’chil Bildagoteel, English speakers call it Oak Flat. It sits on a mountainous plateau within a 17.3-kilometer oasis in the #TontoNationalForest. Rio Tinto and #BHP, two of the world’s biggest mining companies, have staked their claim here through a joint venture called #ResolutionCopper.
"For over 10 years they’ve been lobbying governments for the right to build a colossal #mine that would cover roughly 7,000 acres of surface area, and extend more than a mile into the ground. The only thing that stands in their way is the resistance of the Apache Stronghold, a nonprofit community organization of Natives and non-Natives uniting to counter ongoing colonization, defend holy sites and protect freedom of religion, which was created to protect Chi’chil Bildagoteel.
Read the full story on Ricochet Media. https://ricochet.media/indigenous/brandi-morin-the-apache-stronghold-standing-in-the- way-of-a-massive-copper-mine/
at May 14, 2024https://bsnorrell.blogspot.com/2024/05/new-film-apache-stronghold-protecting.html
#SaveOakFlat #RioTinto #ReaderSupportedNews #RichochetMedia #BrandiMorin #Cree #NativeAmericanNews #IndigenousNews #Greenwashing #NoMiningWithoutConsent #CopperMine
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Diverse coalition urges 29-judge appeals
court to #ProtectOakFlat#TribalNations, Christians, Muslims, Jews, Sikhs among broad coalition seeking to protect historic #NativeAmerican #SacredSite
By Becket Law, #ApacheStronghold, #CensoredNews
April 26, 2024"Meanwhile, national polling indicates 74% of Americans support protecting #OakFlat. The Ninth Circuit ruled last month that the land transfer is not subject to federal laws protecting religious freedom. But five judges dissented, writing that the court 'tragically err[ed]' by refusing to protect Oak Flat.
"Including the 8 briefs filed yesterday, there have now been a total of 23 friend-of-the-court briefs filed in support of Apache Stronghold in this case, representing the voices of hundreds of federally recognized tribes, scores of religious organizations of diverse faiths, and leading scholars of Indian law and the Constitution. A full listing of briefs is available here. Highlights from yesterday’s filings in Apache Stronghold v. United States include:
· Tribal Nations and Tribal Organizations arguing that this case will set vital precedent for tribal nations across the continent.
· The Mennonite Church USA and 20 Mennonite conferences, churches and ministries explaining how the government can manage federal lands while still providing full protection to Native American religious practices;
· Religious liberty law scholars arguing that the plain language of federal civil rights law requires protection of Oak Flat;
· A diverse array of 38 religious and indigenous groups—including the Episcopal Diocese of Eastern Oregon, the Southwestern Conference of the United Church of Christ, and the National Council of Jewish Women demonstrating broad support for Native American religious exercise from across the country;
· The Sikh Coalition, the Christian Legal Society and the Islam and Religious Freedom Action Team of the Religious Freedom Institute noting that the legal standard for judging Native religious liberty claims should be consistent with that for other land-use and prisoner claims;
· Protect the First asking the court of appeals to reconsider its narrow, inflexible approach toward Native American sacred site cases.
· The Native American Law Students Association pointing out the unique effect this case will have on Native American religious believers under the current interpretation of the law.
· The Multi-Indigenous Community Action Group, the International Council of Thirteen Indigenous Grandmothers, and a Tribal Elder explaining that the court’s decision creates an unfair double standard for Native American religious exercise.
"'It is heartening to see a broad coalition of tribes, religious groups, and scholars stand up in defense of Oak Flat,' said Luke Goodrich, vice president and senior counsel at Becket. 'Our nation has a history of destroying Native sacred sites without consequence, and it’s long past time for that dark tradition to end.'"
Read more:
https://bsnorrell.blogspot.com/2024/04/diverse-coalition-urges-29-judge.html#ResolutionCopper #SaveOakFlat #RioTinto
#CulturalGenocide #EnvironmentalRacism #CorporateColonialism #CopperMining #Mining #LandBack #WaterIsLife
#IndigenousLands #SacredSpaces #ReligiousFreedom #IndigenousRights -
Tribal Nations, Christians, Muslims, Jews, Sikhs among broad coalition seeking to protect #FirstNations sacred site
https://bsnorrell.blogspot.com/2024/04/diverse-coalition-urges-29-judge.html#more
Also
Western #Shoshone Host International Uranium Film Festival Las Vegas April 30 & May 1, 2024 -
#ApacheStronghold: Rare Request Gives Federal Court One More Chance to Protect #SacredSite
By Becket Law, Apache Stronghold, #CensoredNews, April 15, 2024
WASHINGTON - "A coalition of Western Apaches and allies today asked all 29 judges on the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals to protect their sacred site at #OakFlat from destruction by a mining project. In Apache Stronghold v. United States, a special 'en banc' panel of eleven judges split 6-5 earlier this year, refusing to stop the federal government from transferring Oak Flat to #ResolutionCopper, a foreign-owned #mining company that plans to turn Oak Flat into a massive mining crater, ending #Apache religious practices forever.
"Today’s appeal gives the full court one more chance to protect the spiritual lifeblood of the Apache people before the case goes to the Supreme Court.
"Since time immemorial, #WesternApaches and other Native peoples have gathered at Oak Flat for sacred religious ceremonies that cannot take place anywhere else. Known in Apache as Chi’chil Biłdagoteel, Oak Flat is listed in the National Register of Historic Places and has been protected from mining and other harmful practices for decades. These protections were eliminated in December 2014 when a last-minute provision was inserted into a must-pass defense bill authorizing the transfer of Oak Flat to the Resolution Copper company. Resolution Copper is a foreign-owned mining company that plans to turn the sacred site into a two-mile-wide and 1,100-foot-deep crater. The majority owner of Resolution Copper, #RioTinto, sparked international outrage when it deliberately destroyed 46,000-year-old #Indigenous rock shelters at one of #Australia’s most significant cultural sites."
Read more: https://bsnorrell.blogspot.com/2024/04/apache-stronghold-rare-request-gives.html
#SaveOakFlat #IndigenousNews #CulturalGenocide #CopperMining #NoCopperMiningOnSacredLand #Recycle #RecycleCopper #NoMiningOnSacredLand #IndigenousLands #Arizona
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The massive #CopperMine that could test the limits of religious freedom
Story by Taylar Dawn Stagner
"Earlier this month, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals declined to stop the construction of a copper mine in #Arizona on land sacred to the #SanCarlosApache Tribe as well as other Indigenous nations. Chí’chil Biłdagoteel, also known as #OakFlat, sits atop the third largest copper deposit on the planet and is essential to green energy projects. The operation, which will be run by #ResolutionCopper, a subsidiary of mining companies #RioTinto and #BHP, will leave a crater nearly 1,000 feet deep and 2 miles wide.
"'Oak Flat is like #MountSinai to us — our most sacred site where we connect with our Creator, our faith, our families and our land,' said Wendsler Noise of #ApacheStronghold, a nonprofit fighting to protect the area. 'We vow to appeal to the Supreme Court.'
"Over the years, Oak Flat has developed a storied history. In 2014, Oak Flat was a part of a #MilitarySpending bill that would allow the government to 'swap' the area with other land in Arizona. In 2016, it was added to the National Register of Historic Places in an attempt to protect it, and in 2021 the Apache Stronghold sued the government, arguing that the land was reserved for the #WesternApaches in an 1852 treaty. Then, in 2023, #Apache Stronghold made the case that the land transfer would keep them from exercising their religion. The court disagreed.
"The issue before the court illustrates a battle between religion, #IndigenousRights, and potential solutions to the climate crisis. For tribal nations like the San Carlos Apache who practice what are known as 'land-based religions' — #ceremonial practices that are inextricably tied to areas Indigenous peoples have relationships with — preserving those lands with religious significance is paramount to the survival, and transmission, of both culture and values to the next generation.
"But for developers, the proposed mine would support a few thousand jobs for the surrounding community, inject $61 billion into the local economy, and provide a critical supply of copper for everything from electric vehicles to energy storage systems. By 2031, the world will need almost 37 million metric tons of copper to continue the process of green-energy electrification. Resolution Copper said that Oak Flat could provide a quarter of U.S. copper production.
"At the heart of Apache Stronghold’s legal case is something called 'substantial burden' — there must be proof that the government has interfered with an individual’s right to practice their religious beliefs. Substantial burden protects U.S. citizens from government interference, unless the government has a really good reason. That means Apache Stronghold’s claim needs to be justified with a high level of scrutiny. "
#SaveOakFlat #RecycleCopper #NoCopperMiningOnSacredLand #CulturalGenocide #LandBack #RespectTheTreaties
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via @arizonamirror
If #Hobbs is serious about protecting #groundwater, she must work to close the #mining loophole
by Russ McSpadden
February 12, 2024"In her first State of the State address just over a year ago, Gov. #KatieHobbs was unequivocal about her commitment to tackling one of the state’s greatest challenges: our dwindling #water supply.
“Our groundwater should be used to support #Arizonans, not foreign business interests,” she said in that speech, referring to the Saudi Arabian conglomerate #Fondomonte. Over the past few years, Fondomonte has been pumping unlimited amounts of groundwater in La Paz County for alfalfa crops that it ships to feed cows on the other side of the earth.
"Though the Hobbs administration has already canceled one of Fondomonte’s four leases and says it won’t renew the others when they’re up this month, the problem doesn’t end with Saudi agriculture.
"It’s also mining companies that take advantage of loopholes in the state’s water laws to maximize profit at the expense of Arizonans — including mining giants #RioTinto and# BHP.
"Because of intense pressure from #lobbyists, when lawmakers adopted the much-heralded #ArizonaGroundwaterManagementAct in 1980 they exempted #mines from groundwater regulation, even when located in #ActiveManagement Areas — state-designated areas where groundwater pumping is controlled. That means that mines can pump unlimited amounts of water without paying the state a dime.
"This exemption was controversial in 1980. Today it’s existentially dangerous.
#ResolutionCopper, a subsidiary of Rio Tinto and BHP, is a perfect example. Their proposed mine at #OakFlat — about 70 miles east of #Phoenix in the #TontoNationalForest and within the Phoenix Active Management Area — would pump 250 billion gallons of desert groundwater over the life of the project.
"That’s 17 million gallons of water every day for four decades.
"Under current water prices, that equates to $404 million worth of groundwater that Resolution Copper will get for free. Arizona won’t see a cent for it. And it’s more than likely that the copper ore from Oak Flat will be exported to China for smelting, again depriving local communities of economic benefit.
"This limitless pumping would happen even as the #megadrought that has plagued the #AmericanSouthwest for the past two decades is likely to worsen, straining the #ColoradoRiver and #Gila rivers even more and making us all more reliant on groundwater aquifers.
"If left intact, the mining loophole will facilitate construction of Resolution’s massive mine. The extreme water pumping from the #EastSaltRiverValley will lead to groundwater depletion and subsidence, threatening to deplete wells and damage infrastructure.
"The #CenterForBiologicalDiversity, where I work, has been fighting for decades to stop this mine, and Canadian mining company Hudbay’s disastrous plan to mine for copper in the #SantaRita Mountains south of #Tucson (in the Tucson Active Management Area).
"Both projects would devastate surrounding fragile #ecosystems, pushing endangered species like the #MexicanSpottedOwl closer to the brink of #extinction. They would also destroy sacred #TribalLands and gulp down massive amounts of water when other users are being asked to conserve.
"Handing mines unlimited access to Arizona’s precious desert groundwater would be an injustice to Arizona’s #Tribes and every resident of this state.
"Fortunately, Hobbs has the vision and courage to fight for a secure water future for Arizona. It is time for her to work with legislators to close the mining loophole in Arizona water law and subject mines to the same groundwater pumping limits that apply to other entities within the state’s Active Management Areas.
"We’re hopeful she will work to block #ResolutionCopperMine and other terrible mining projects like #Hudbay’s. At the very least, it’s time for mining giants to pay for the water they use just like the rest of us."
#WaterIsLife #HumanRightsViolations #CulturalGenocide #CopperMining #Mining #CorporateColonialism #EnvironmentalRacism #IndigenousNews #SaveOakFlat #IndigenousRights #Apache
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Opinion: Why the birthplace of the Western #Apache religion shouldn’t be destroyed by a #CopperMine
by Luke Goodrich
February 6, 2024·"A federal court is poised to decide whether a #NativeAmerican #sacred site will be destroyed by a massive #copper #mine. Mining proponents claim that destroying the #SacredSite is necessary for the development of #GreenEnergy. That claim is both factually wrong and morally repugnant. And recent polling shows that the vast majority of Americans agree with what the constitution requires: #Native sacred sites deserve the same protection as all other houses of worship.
"Since before European contact, #WesternApache and other Native tribes have lived and honored their #Creator at #OakFlat, or 'Chi’chil Bildagoteel.' The site is the birthplace of Western Apache religion and the site of ancient religious ceremonies that cannot take place anywhere else. Because of its religious and cultural significance, Oak Flat is on the National Register of Historic Places and has been protected from mining and other destructive practices for decades.
"That changed in 2014, when several members of Congress, supported by #corporate #mining #lobbyists, slipped an amendment into a must-pass defense bill authorizing the transfer of Oak Flat to a foreign-owned mining giant. That company, #ResolutionCopper, announced plans to obliterate the sacred ground by swallowing it in a mining crater nearly two miles wide and 1,100-feet deep, ending Apache religious practices forever. That was no surprise given the company’s sordid history dealing with #IndigenousPeoples. The majority owner of Resolution Copper is #RioTinto (the world’s second largest mining company), which sparked international outrage in 2020 when it destroyed a 46,000-year-old rock shelter with some of the most significant #Aboriginal artifacts in all of #Australia.
"The Apache and their allies, represented by my firm, the #BecketFundForReligiousLiberty, have been fighting in court to ensure that such an atrocity won’t repeat itself at Oak Flat. After initial court rulings against the Apache, a full panel of 11 judges at the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals reheard their appeal last spring. A decision on whether the government can execute the land transfer is expected any day.
"Resolution Copper and its backers want the public to believe that building the mine is essential for developing #renewable energy. Extracting the copper beneath Oak Flat, they say, will help to build batteries necessary for powering #ElectricVehicles and thus fight #ClimateChange. In other words, we have to destroy Oak Flat in order to save the planet.
"These claims, however, are false — and they are specifically designed to obscure the physical and cultural destruction the project would wreak on the land.
"The mine will destroy the #environment, not save it. It is undisputed that the mine will swallow the ecologically diverse landscape of Oak Flat in a massive crater, decimating the local #ecosystem. It will also leave behind approximately 1.37 billion tons of '#tailings,' or #MiningWaste, which, according to the government’s own environmental assessment, will pollute the #groundwater and scar the landscape permanently. And the mine will consume vast quantities of water at the time it is most needed by drought-stricken towns and #farmers.
"Supporters of the mine are also at odds with the majority of Americans. According to this year’s Religious Freedom Index, an annual survey conducted by Becket, 74% of Americans believe that Native sacred sites on federal land should be protected from mining projects, even when the projects are purportedly pro-jobs and pro-environment.
"That conclusion is both sensible and humane. America can transition to renewable energy without blasting the cradle of Western Apache religion into oblivion. And it should. For too long, our nation has made excuses for taking advantage of #IndigenousPeople and their land. Indeed, our nation drove the Western Apache off Oak Flat and surrounding lands in the 1800s precisely to make way for #MiningInterests. It shouldn’t repeat that #injustice again.
"It is past time to protect Indigenous sacred sites from further destruction. Basic fairness and our constitutional commitment to religious freedom require no less. And, happily, most Americans agree."
https://news.yahoo.com/opinion-why-birthplace-western-apache-200000087.html
#SaveOakFlat #IndigenousActivism #CulturalGenocide #EnvironmentalRacism #CorporateColonialism #CopperMining #WaterIsLife
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#HouseOfTearsCarvers will bring the pole to #California & #Arizona & #OakFlat site for #prayers on March 24–25. Then to #NewMexico , #Nevada & #Idaho to reach their home at #LummiNation by April 1. The group also #invited interested people to visit them during a #GatheringOfTheEagles - May 21–29 to see #canoe #families pass through #SanJuanIslands & culminate in several days of #celebration at the #Lummi #reservation near #Bellingham
https://theorcasonian.com/lummi-house-of-tears-carvers-visited-orcas-to-help-protect-oak-flat-from-mining/
#PNW #Indigenous #FirstNations #Salish -
Protect #ChichilBildagoteel (#OakFlat)
"The #ApacheStronghold with #Indigenous allies and US and international supporters have tirelessly been working to stop a nearly 8-year-long process to exchange Oak Flat, a 2,200-acre site in #TontoNationalForest, to #ResolutionCopper, a subsidiary of #RioTinto and #BHP, which plans to construct one of the largest copper and ore #mining pits in the world."
#NativeAmericans #FirstNations #CopperMining #OpenPitMining #extractivism
