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

https://becketfund.org/media/breaking-supreme-court-refuses-plea-to-protect-oak-flat/

Terrible news from #SCOTUS, as the court has chosen to take away the protection provided to Oak Flat (a sacred place for the San Carlos Apache people).

The struggle to save #OakFlat / #ApacheStronghold is far from over, but today's news is still deeply sad.

#Apache #Indigenous #ReligiousLiberty #FirstAmendment #Arizona

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.html

Link 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

via @bsnorrell.blogspot.com

#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.html

Fight 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/Fight4ourexistence

YT: 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

https://www.yahoo.com/news/federal-judge-temporarily-halts-land-194722380.html?guccounter=1&guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly9zZWFyY2guYnJhdmUuY29tLw&guce_referrer_sig=AQAAAF6EUfHynkdT3-J-uoIn5V65TtlGLhIQ6U5Hd33mk7gWgl7syUYphcIpFzioa0ehZDqdfbJA5Hl5h2tYn11_bzuSchT-bT7m8efYeBZ92Rs436WAnrTOT-UcRSxLp-O0jvSUBQM0jv299ZrbmILY1ZbdU6-LehWX5-tdv355nHN4

Some good news for #ApacheStronghold

#OakFlat #SaveOakFlat #SanCarlosApache #Apache #ReligiousLiberty #NativeAmerican #FirstNations

Our correspondent, Sean Little, who has been following the story for years, offers analysis and a final round-up of the Oak Flat case, examining the critical legal battles over sacred land, the evolving interpretation of “substantial burden,” and what this precedent means for Indigenous and minority religions in the United States.

https://wildhunt.org/2025/05/analysis-oak-flat-and-substantial-burden.html

#oakflat #apachestronghold #chichilbildagoteel #nativeamerican #religiousfreedom #riotinto #scotus #religion

#ApacheStronghold #ChippewaCree #ChiricahuaApache

11/12

URGENT! #PhoenixArizona - #ApacheStronghold: Run from Oak Flat to Phoenix Courthouse, Run Begins May 4, 2025

By Wendsler Nosie, Sr., Apache Stronghold
Censored News, April 29, 2025

"I am putting out the call to all spiritual runners (runners and walkers), Native and nonnative, to stop the destruction of Chi'chil Bildagoteel. Oak Flat is now on death row!

"On Sunday, May 4th, Spiritual runners will begin the trek from Oak Flat to the Federal court house, Sandra Day O’Connor Court Building, for the Apache Stronghold vs. U. S. hearing, asking for a preliminary injunction to stop the land transfer of Oak Flat to Resolution Copper, because of the US Forest Service intention to publish the Federal environmental impact statement before June 16 -- which allows a foreign mining company, #ResolutionCopper, to take possession of the land!

"The hearing is scheduled for May 7th at 9:30 am.

"In the next few days the details will be finalized for the run . Take a stand for future generations. Save this Sacred site for the next generation. This is urgent. Please contact us for more information or let us know you are coming.

"No drugs or alcohol. This is a spiritual journey.

"Please, please share this post we don’t have a lot of time. Your help in gathering people together is important. Blessings."

https://bsnorrell.blogspot.com/2025/04/apache-stronghold-run-from-oak-flat-to.html

#CensoredNews #ReaderSupportedNews #SaveOakFlat #ProtectOakFlat #ProtectTheSacred #NativeAmericans #RioTinto #CopperMining #Arizona #LeaveItInTheGround #ChichilBildagoteel

Trump to approve land swap for Rio Tinto copper mine opposed by Native Americans

By Ernest Scheyder
April 18, 2025

- Forest Service to republish environmental report within 60 days
- Publication needed to approve land swap for Resolution project
- Native groups oppose project on religious grounds
- Related case still pending at Supreme Court

"The #Trump administration said on Thursday it would approve a land swap needed for #RioTinto and #BHP to build one of the world's largest copper mines, despite concerns from Native Americans that it would destroy a site of religious value.
The move is likely to escalate tensions between Indigenous groups vocal about the need to preserve historical lands and Western governments eager to boost critical minerals production and offset China's sector dominance.

"The U.S. Forest Service, which is part of the Agriculture Department, said it will republish within 60 days an environmental report needed for the #ResolutionCopper project land swap to occur.

"Congress and then-President #BarackObama approved the mine in 2014 after it was added at the last minute to a must-pass military funding bill [#NDAA] with the condition that an environmental report be published.

"The underground mine - which President Donald Trump approved in his first term before successor Joe Biden reversed him - would supply more than a quarter of U.S. appetite for copper and be a key part of Trump's plan to boost U.S. mining.

"Copper is used in construction, transportation, electronics and many other industries. The United States imports roughly half of its copper needs each year.

"Yet the mine's construction would cause a crater that would swallow the Oak Flat site where Arizona's San Carlos Apache worship. That has fueled strong opposition from all but one of the state's 22 Native American tribes, as well as the National Congress of American Indians.

"Apache Stronghold, a nonprofit group comprised of the San Carlos Apache Tribe and conservationists, asked the U.S. Supreme Court last September to block the land swap. The court has not yet decided whether to take that case.
Were the court to do so, however, the Forest Service said on Thursday it 'may reevaluate how to proceed' regarding the land swap.

" 'The U.S. government is rushing to give away our spiritual home before the courts can even rule, just like it's rushed to erase Native people for generations,' said #WendslerNosie, an #ApacheStronghold leader."

Read more:
https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/boards-policy-regulation/trump-approve-land-swap-rio-tinto-copper-mine-opposed-by-native-americans-2025-04-18/

#Apaches #WesternApaches #NativeAmericans #SacredSite #ResolutionCopper #SaveOakFlat #ChichilBiłdagoteel #CorporateColonialism #ProtectOakFlat #ReaderSupportedNews #SCOTUS #DefendTheSacred #CopperMine
#WaterIsLife #CulturalGenocide #WesternApache #SacredSites #NoMiningWithoutConsent #RecycleCopper #TontoNationalForest

#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 85003

WASHINGTON – "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.html

Video 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

Written by: Debra Utacia Krol ✍️ | Photos by: Provided by Becket Law, Michael Chow, Thomas Hawthorne/The Republic, Cheryl Evans/The Republic 📷️

2/4

#oakflat #mining #copper #Trump #ApacheStronghold #Apache #Arizona

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: U.S. Give-Away would Destroy Spiritual Home of #Apache

By Wendsler Nosie, Apache Stronghold, March 13, 2025, via #CensoredNews

"In the heart of #TontoNationalForest in #Arizona lies a place that my people, the #WesternApache, still hold above all others. This place is Chi'chil Biłdagoteel, also known as Oak Flat. To us, it is more than a stretch of land; it is sacred and holy. It is where our ancestors walked, where we gather to pray, to carry out ceremonies passed down through generations, and to speak to our Creator.

"This land is part of who we are as a people, and its spirit is bound to our own.
Now, the federal government plans to give our sacred Oak Flat to a multinational #mining #corporation owned by the Chinese Communist Party. This will not just scar the land; it will destroy it, poisoning the environment and trampling on our tribal rights. But the deepest wound will be the loss of our spiritual home, a place our people cannot exist without. We are fighting this in the courts, all the way to the #USSupremeCourt. But this is about more than law and policy—this is about survival of our way of life and the spirit of this sacred land.

https://bsnorrell.blogspot.com/2025/03/apache-stronghold-us-give-away-would.html
#SaveOakFlat #ChichilBiłdagoteel #CorporateColonialism #ProtectOakFlat #ReaderSupportedNews #SCOTUS #DefendTheSacred #CopperMine
#WaterIsLife #ResolutionCopper #RioTinto #RecycleCopper #CulturalGenocide #NoMiningWithoutConsent #RecycleCopper

#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.html

Donate:
https://www.gofundme.com/f/stand-with-apache-stronghold-protect-sacred-sites

More 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

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, 2024

WASHINGTON – "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 media@becketlaw.org or 202-349-7219."

Source:
https://bsnorrell.blogspot.com/2024/09/apache-stronghold-asks-supreme-court-to.html

Legal 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