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

#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

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. "

Read more:
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/the-massive-copper-mine-that-could-test-the-limits-of-religious-freedom/ar-BB1k8Vhn

BREAKING: Federal court greenlights destruction of #OakFlat

#ApacheStronghold vows to appeal decision to U.S. Supreme Court

By Apache Stronghold, Censored News, March 1, 2024

WASHINGTON – "A divided federal court (6-5) today refused to protect an ancient #NativeAmerican sacred site from destruction by a multinational #mining giant, putting the case on a fast track to the Supreme Court. In Apache Stronghold v. United States, a rare 'en banc' panel of eleven judges from the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that the federal government can transfer the #SacredSite 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 the short video linked below to learn more).

"The decision was by a bare majority, with five judges vigorously disagreeing and writing that the majority 'tragically err[ed]' in allowing the government to 'obliterate[e] Oak Flat' and prevent the '#WesternApaches from ever again' engaging in their religious exercise. With the help of Becket, Apache Stronghold has vowed to appeal the decision to the U.S. Supreme Court.

"Since time immemorial, Western Apaches 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 on the National Register of Historic Places and has been protected from mining and other harmful practices for decades. These protections were eliminated in 2014, when a last-minute provision was inserted into a must-pass #DefenseBill authorizing the transfer of Oak Flat to Resolution Copper, 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, Rio Tinto, recently 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 like #MountSinai to us—our most sacred site where we connect with our Creator, our faith, our families, and our land,” said Dr. Wendsler Nosie of Apache Stronghold. “Today’s ruling targets the spiritual lifeblood of my people, but it will not stop our struggle to save Oak Flat. We vow to appeal to the Supreme Court.'

Source:
https://bsnorrell.blogspot.com/2024/03/federal-court-greenlights-destruction.html

Link to video:
https://youtu.be/Zh68xOn0B_8?si=428-0_7qDRrLgQm7

#SaveOakFlat #RioTinto
#CulturalGenocide #EnvironmentalRacism #CorporateColonialism #CopperMining #Mining #LandBack #WaterIsLife
#IndigenousLands #SacredSpaces #ReligiousFreedom #IndigenousRights