ICYMI - from 2014

#DemocracyNow
Mar 14, 2014

"The iconic Grand Canyon is the site of a battle over toxic uranium mining. Last year, a company called Energy Fuels Resources was given federal approval to reopen a mine six miles from the Grand Canyon's popular South Rim entrance. A coalition of Native and environmental groups have protested the decision, saying uranium mining could strain scarce water sources and pose serious health effects. Diné (Navajo) tribal lands are littered with abandoned uranium mines. From 1944 to 1986, 3.9 million tons of uranium ore were chiseled and blasted from the mountains and plains of the region. More than 1,000 mines have closed, but the mining companies never properly disposed of their radioactive waste piles, leading to a spike in cancer rates and other health ailments. Broadcasting from Flagstaff, Arizona, we speak with Taylor McKinnon, director of energy with Grand Canyon Trust, and #KleeBenally, a Diné (Navajo) activist and musician. "It's really a slow genocide of the people, not just indigenous people of this region, but it's estimated that there are over 10 million people who are residing within 50 miles of abandoned #uranium mines," Benally says. Benally also describes the struggle to preserve the San Francisco Peaks, an area considered sacred by 13 Native tribes, where the Snowbowl ski resort is using treated sewage water to make snow."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wSEADfWh9To

#NoUraniumMining #IndigenousActivism #IndigenousAction #Navajo #TheReturnofNavajoBoy

[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