June 6th, 2009   Supreme Court Affirms Tribes Have No Religious Rights, Tribes and others Call For Congressional Action to Protect Sacred Places Flagstaff, AZ -- On Monday, June 8th 2009, the Supreme Court denied the petition by Tribes & Environmental groups to hear the case to protect the holy San Francisco Peaks.   For nearly a decade, the Save the Peaks Coalition, Tribes, Environmental groups, and community members lead an effort to stop the Snowbowl ski area’s plan to expand it’s development on the Peaks, and make snow from treated sewage effluent. The ski resort operates on the Holy Mountain through a lease by the United States Forest Service, which sanctioned the proposed development in 2004.   This is the second time that a petition for the protection of the San Francisco Peaks has been denied by the Supreme Court. According to Howard Shanker, attorney for the Navajo Nation, the Havasupai Tribe, the Yavapai-Apache Nation, the White Mountain Apache Tribe, Flagstaff Activist Network, the Center for Biological Diversity and others, and former congressional candidate: “It is unfortunate that the Supreme Court denied our petition for certiorari.  The Court’s denial serves to perpetuate injustice and the application of bad law regarding the rights of Native Americans to protect sacred ...

Posted by: David V. Hill Hello Friends, We are getting information that the uranium industry has mounted a full out battle to stop the MT Taylor Traditional Cultural Property nomination.  They have hired a professional to work within the community of Grants to drive the wedge issues.   The Grants uranium people are sending letters that have far exceeded the numbers of letters received in favor of preserving MT Taylor. We need every person to write a letter to the Cultural Properties Review Committee and tell them how they feel about Mt Taylor and why it is important to protect it, so that the Cultural Properties Review Committee can feel strong in approving the TCP due to strong public support. If this nomination is not successful, the nominating tribes (Navajo Nation, the Pueblos of Hopi, Zuni, Acoma, and Laguna) will not be allowed to reapply again for five years.   This will mean that the mining operations can resume on the mountain with no controls or concern for native religious interests.   We cannot let this happen.  Please write your letter.  Please forward this email to anyone that you know who may be interested. This is the address to send your letter. State of New ...

On April 22nd Earth Day, the Navajo Nation Council passed a resolution calling on Obama to protect sacred places. The document also calls on the US to immediately sign onto the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. The Navajo Nation Council additionally urges the US President to meet with the tribe to discuss the protection of the holy San Francisco Peaks & other sacred places before May 8th 2009. Obama had previously made statements during his campaign vowing to help tribes protect threatened sacred sites. "Native American sacred places and site-specific ceremonies are under threat from development, pollution, and vandalism," stated his platform. "Barack Obama supports legal protections for sacred places and cultural traditions, including Native ancestors' burial grounds and churches." Read more here at indianz.com: http://64.38.12.138/News/2009/013723.asp You can send a message to Obama regarding this issue here: http://www.whitehouse.gov/CONTACT/  Download the Navajo Nation Peaks/Obama Resolution More info: www.savethepeaks.org Klee Benally indigenousaction[at]gmail.com

  12/29/08 - Outta Your Backpack Media (OYBMedia) has released a DVD of 19 short films made by Indigenous youth. The videos in this compilation were almost all made during our 2007-2008 workshops. Some of the videos were made in 6 hours, some in 4 days by folks that had never had previous experience. All proceeds from the sales of this DVD will go directly back into Outta Your Backpack Media's efforts to empower Indigenous Youth! Purchase OYBMedia Vol. 2 at Taala Hooghan Infoshop in Flagstaff, AZ or at online at Filmbaby.com for 12.99! Read More About the DVD & How You Can Support OYBMedia!

We just set up www.doodadesertrock.com and updated the short 2006 documentary "Making A Stand At Desert Rock." On December 12th, 2006 community members in Chaco Rio, New Mexico established a blockade to prevent preliminary work for proposed development of a massive coal-fired power plant. Learn more at www.doodadesertrock.com.

The Holy San Francisco Peaks   Take Action: Contact a US Congressional representative here. News Release FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Date: Tuesday, January 6th 2009 Contact: Klee Benally - Save the Peaks Coalition Email: indigenousaction@gmail.com Website: www.savethepeaks.org Tribes & Environmental Groups Petition Supreme Court in Appeal to Protect Religious Freedom & Environmental Integrity of Sacred Mountain FLAGSTAFF, AZ – On Monday, January 5th 2009, Tribes & environmental groups in Arizona filed a unified petition for the U.S. Supreme Court to hear appeals in a precedent setting legal battle to protect religious freedom and the ecological integrity of the holy San Francisco Peaks. The slopes of the holy San Francisco Peaks, located in Northern Arizona, have been at the center of a historical and lengthy battle that has pitted economic interests on public lands against environmental integrity, public health and cultural survival. Arizona Snowbowl, a small private ski business that leases land from the U.S. Forest Service, is attempting to expand current development and use millions of gallons of recycled sewage water to make fake snow. "This is an important case for the Supreme Court to hear. The Supreme Court, in a split decision, previously deprived Native Americans of First Amendment rights vis-à-vis sacred sites under the control of the federal government." said Howard ...

Black Mesa, AZ -- On Monday, December 22nd, 2008 The U.S. Department of the Interior Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement (OSM) issued a decision to approve the Black Mesa Project. This decision continues the legacy of the United States Government's genocidal policies against those living in the Black Mesa region. For more than 30 years Dine' and Hopi traditionalists, mainly elders, have resisted continued assaults on their lives and land because of coal mining operations. Through policies such as PL93-531, the U.S. has already forcibly relocated more than 14,000 Dine' people from their ancestral homelands. Although PL93-531 has been portrayed as a resolution to this so-called "Navajo-Hopi Land Dispute", elders from the Black Mesa region have resisted and held that the coal beneath their homes has been the real interests of the Federal and Tribal governments. This decision has been widely viewed as a foregone conclusion because of the colonial history of the area relating to resource extraction. Activist's also decried the decision making process due to OSM's lack of meaningful outreach to impacted communities and refusal to extend public comment deadlines. In February 2004, Peabody Energy submitted to the U.S. Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement (OSM) a permit application ...

[/caption] Nike has introduced what it is calling the "Air Native N7", a shoe designed especially for us Natives. Not only is Nike proud in producing its first shoe for a "specific" ethnic group, the company is also touting this product as a contribution to the fight against diabetes!   Before we start praising this billion-dollar multinational corporation for its recognition and attempt to promote wellness in our Indigenous communities, we should critically question the true intentions behind this gesture, their slick marketing scheme, and especially their business practices. A recent AP article states that the shoe "will be distributed solely to American Indians; tribal wellness programs and tribal schools nationwide will be able to purchase the shoe at wholesale price and then pass it along to individuals, often at no cost." At no cost? Sounds like a deal too good to be true. What about the cost to tribal schools and wellness programs already strapped for funding? The AP article further states that "[Nike] anticipates selling at least 10,000 pairs and raising $200,000 for tribal programs." The article acknowledges that "At $42.80 wholesale, it represents less of a financial opportunity than a good will and branding effort." Aside from burnishing Nike's corporate image, what direct and ...