Latest news with #WendslerNosieSr.
Yahoo
27-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Supreme Court clears way for massive copper mine on Apache sacred land
The Supreme Court declined Tuesday to hear an Apache religious challenge to the construction of a massive copper mine on Oak Flat, a swath of untouched federal land in Arizona that tribe members consider sacred and irreplaceable. The decision, which leaves intact a lower court's ruling against the tribe members, marked a major loss for Apache Stronghold, a group that has long argued that the mine's construction would violate their religious rights by permanently wiping out a unique sacred site used for Apache religious ceremonies. It allows the U.S. Forest Service to move forward with plans to issue a final environmental impact report and hear a last round of public comment before issuing a decision on transferring the land to Resolution Copper, a joint venture by the multinational mining companies Rio Tinto and BHP Group. Read more: Battle for Oak Flat: How Apache opposition to a copper mine became a religious liberty test Wendsler Nosie Sr., an Apache elder and leader of the Apache Stronghold, said in a statement that his group would continue to defend the land about 70 miles east of Phoenix — including through other court battles challenging the mine and an appeal to Congress to intervene. "We will never stop fighting — nothing will deter us from protecting Oak Flat from destruction," Nosie said. "We urge Congress to take decisive action to stop this injustice while we press forward in the courts." Vicky Peacey, Resolution Copper's general manager, said in a statement that the company was pleased the lower court's decision will stand. "The Resolution Copper mine is vital to securing America's energy future, infrastructure needs, and national defense with a domestic supply of copper and other critical minerals," Peacey said. She said the project has "significant community support" and "the potential to become one of the largest copper mines in America, add $1 billion a year to Arizona's economy, and create thousands of local jobs in a region where mining has played an important role for more than a century." The high court's majority did not articulate a stance in the case, but by declining to hear it sided with a heavily divided panel of judges in the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals that ruled against the Apache in March 2024. However, Justice Neil M. Gorsuch wrote a dissent — joined by his fellow conservative, Justice Clarence Thomas — saying the majority's decision not to take the case was "a grievous mistake" and "one with consequences that threaten to reverberate for generations." Gorsuch said he had "no doubt" that the high court would have heard the case "if the government sought to demolish a historic cathedral" rather than a Native American sacred site. "Faced with the government's plan to destroy an ancient site of tribal worship, we owe the Apaches no less," Gorsuch wrote. "They may live far from Washington, D.C., and their history and religious practices may be unfamiliar to many. But that should make no difference." Gorsuch said no one could "sensibly" argue against the significance of the case. "As the government has made plain, it intends to clear the way for Resolution Copper to begin the destruction of Oak Flat imminently," he wrote. Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr., another conservative, did not participate in the conversation or decision in the case, though a reason was not provided. The case touches on a host of politicized issues, including federal land use, religious liberty and efforts to balance corporate interests with limited natural resources and environmental degradation. It also has confounded traditional political divides, including by uniting conservative religious organizations and liberal environmental groups behind the Apache. The fight between Apache Stronghold and Resolution Copper has been ongoing for years. Nosie and other Stronghold members have traveled the country since the 9th Circuit ruling against them to raise awareness about their effort. Resolution Copper has continued billions of dollars' worth of preparations for the mine in the surrounding area, where it has other mining operations, and provided substantial financial support to local officials in the nearby town of Superior, Ariz. — which is braced for an influx of mining employees and their families and the accompanying strains on infrastructure. At the core of the Apache challenge to the mine is their argument that the mine would not just hamper their ability to practice their religion, but obliterate it. Oak Flat, on the edge of the Tonto National Forest about an hour outside Phoenix and not far from the San Carlos Apache Indian Reservation, is used by the Apache for sweats and for coming-of-age ceremonies known as Sunrise Dances, where young girls are ushered into womanhood. The Apache believe the land is blessed by their creator and home to spiritual guardians akin to angels, and researchers have found the site is archaeologically significant not just to the Apache but to Hopi, O'odham, Yavapai and Zuni tribes. Oak Flat also sits atop one of the world's largest untapped copper ore deposits — with enough estimated copper to supply up to a quarter of U.S. copper demand. Such demand has exploded with the proliferation of telecommunications networks, electric vehicles and other technologies that use the element. The land in question had been under federal protection for decades, until Republicans added language allowing the federal government to sell or swap the land to the mining companies into a must-pass defense bill in 2014. Federal planning records show that extracting the deposit would over the course of several decades turn Oak Flat — which the Apache call Chí'chil Bildagoteel — into a nearly two-mile-wide, 1,000-foot-deep industrial crater. Resolution Copper has said it has worked closely with Native American advisors and worked to avoid important Apache sites in its planning, including nearby Apache Leap. Peacey said the company has been working for more than a decade to "preserve and reduce potential impacts on Tribal, social, and cultural interests," and will continue to do so. Apache Stronghold asked the Supreme Court to take up the case after an 11-judge panel of 9th Circuit judges split 6-5 in favor of the federal government's right to use its land as it chooses. Such splits in circuit decisions often get the attention of the high court, but not always. Judge Daniel P. Collins, an appointee of President Trump, authored the majority opinion. He wrote that Apache Stronghold's religious claims failed because, while the federal government's transfer of Oak Flat to Resolution Copper might interfere with the Apaches' practice of their religion, it did not "coerce" them into acting contrary to their beliefs, "discriminate" or "penalize" them, or deny them privileges afforded to other citizens. He wrote that Apache Stronghold had essentially asked the government to give them "de facto" ownership of a "rather spacious tract" of public land, which had to be rejected. Collins was joined by four other Trump appointees and an appointee of President George W. Bush. In his dissent Tuesday, Gorsuch wrote that the 9th Circuit "encompasses approximately 74% of all federal land and almost a third of the nation's Native American population," so its ruling that the government could destroy a sacred native site on federal land would now govern most if not all "sacred-site disputes" in the country moving forward. He said that ruling would not just threaten native sites, but all religious sites on federal land — including many churches. Luke Goodrich, an attorney for Apache Stronghold and senior counsel at the religious rights law firm Becket, said it was "hard to imagine a more brazen attack on faith than blasting the birthplace of Apache religion into a gaping crater," and the court's "refusal to halt the destruction is a tragic departure from its strong record of defending religious freedom." Times staff writer David G. Savage in Washington contributed to this report. Get the L.A. Times Politics newsletter. Deeply reported insights into legislation, politics and policy from Sacramento, Washington and beyond, in your inbox twice per week. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Los Angeles Times
27-05-2025
- Business
- Los Angeles Times
Supreme Court clears way for massive copper mine on Apache sacred land
The Supreme Court declined Tuesday to hear an Apache religious challenge to the construction of a massive copper mine on Oak Flat, a swath of untouched federal land in Arizona that tribe members consider sacred and irreplaceable. The decision, which leaves intact a lower court's ruling against the tribe members, marked a major loss for Apache Stronghold, a group that has long argued that the mine's construction would violate their religious rights by permanently wiping out a unique sacred site used for Apache religious ceremonies. It allows the U.S. Forest Service to move forward with plans to issue a final environmental impact report and hear a last round of public comment before issuing a decision on transferring the land to Resolution Copper, a joint venture by the multinational mining companies Rio Tinto and BHP Group. Wendsler Nosie Sr., an Apache elder and leader of the Apache Stronghold, said in a statement that his group would continue to defend the land about 70 miles east of Phoenix — including through other court battles challenging the mine and an appeal to Congress to intervene. 'We will never stop fighting — nothing will deter us from protecting Oak Flat from destruction,' Nosie said. 'We urge Congress to take decisive action to stop this injustice while we press forward in the courts.' Vicky Peacey, Resolution Copper's general manager, said in a statement that the company was pleased the lower court's decision will stand. 'The Resolution Copper mine is vital to securing America's energy future, infrastructure needs, and national defense with a domestic supply of copper and other critical minerals,' Peacey said. She said the project has 'significant community support' and 'the potential to become one of the largest copper mines in America, add $1 billion a year to Arizona's economy, and create thousands of local jobs in a region where mining has played an important role for more than a century.' The high court's majority did not articulate a stance in the case, but by declining to hear it sided with a heavily divided panel of judges in the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals that ruled against the Apache in March 2024. However, Justice Neil M. Gorsuch wrote a dissent — joined by his fellow conservative, Justice Clarence Thomas — saying the majority's decision not to take the case was 'a grievous mistake' and 'one with consequences that threaten to reverberate for generations.' Gorsuch said he had 'no doubt' that the high court would have heard the case 'if the government sought to demolish a historic cathedral' rather than a Native American sacred site. 'Faced with the government's plan to destroy an ancient site of tribal worship, we owe the Apaches no less,' Gorsuch wrote. 'They may live far from Washington, D.C., and their history and religious practices may be unfamiliar to many. But that should make no difference.' Gorsuch said no one could 'sensibly' argue against the significance of the case. 'As the government has made plain, it intends to clear the way for Resolution Copper to begin the destruction of Oak Flat imminently,' he wrote. Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr., another conservative, did not participate in the conversation or decision in the case, though a reason was not provided. The case touches on a host of politicized issues, including federal land use, religious liberty and efforts to balance corporate interests with limited natural resources and environmental degradation. It also has confounded traditional political divides, including by uniting conservative religious organizations and liberal environmental groups behind the Apache. The fight between Apache Stronghold and Resolution Copper has been ongoing for years. Nosie and other Stronghold members have traveled the country since the 9th Circuit ruling against them to raise awareness about their effort. Resolution Copper has continued billions of dollars' worth of preparations for the mine in the surrounding area, where it has other mining operations, and provided substantial financial support to local officials in the nearby town of Superior, Ariz. — which is braced for an influx of mining employees and their families and the accompanying strains on infrastructure. At the core of the Apache challenge to the mine is their argument that the mine would not just hamper their ability to practice their religion, but obliterate it. Oak Flat, on the edge of the Tonto National Forest about an hour outside Phoenix and not far from the San Carlos Apache Indian Reservation, is used by the Apache for sweats and for coming-of-age ceremonies known as Sunrise Dances, where young girls are ushered into womanhood. The Apache believe the land is blessed by their creator and home to spiritual guardians akin to angels, and researchers have found the site is archaeologically significant not just to the Apache but to Hopi, O'odham, Yavapai and Zuni tribes. Oak Flat also sits atop one of the world's largest untapped copper ore deposits — with enough estimated copper to supply up to a quarter of U.S. copper demand. Such demand has exploded with the proliferation of telecommunications networks, electric vehicles and other technologies that use the element. The land in question had been under federal protection for decades, until Republicans added language allowing the federal government to sell or swap the land to the mining companies into a must-pass defense bill in 2014. Federal planning records show that extracting the deposit would over the course of several decades turn Oak Flat — which the Apache call Chí'chil Bildagoteel — into a nearly two-mile-wide, 1,000-foot-deep industrial crater. Resolution Copper has said it has worked closely with Native American advisors and worked to avoid important Apache sites in its planning, including nearby Apache Leap. Peacey said the company has been working for more than a decade to 'preserve and reduce potential impacts on Tribal, social, and cultural interests,' and will continue to do so. Apache Stronghold asked the Supreme Court to take up the case after an 11-judge panel of 9th Circuit judges split 6-5 in favor of the federal government's right to use its land as it chooses. Such splits in circuit decisions often get the attention of the high court, but not always. Judge Daniel P. Collins, an appointee of President Trump, authored the majority opinion. He wrote that Apache Stronghold's religious claims failed because, while the federal government's transfer of Oak Flat to Resolution Copper might interfere with the Apaches' practice of their religion, it did not 'coerce' them into acting contrary to their beliefs, 'discriminate' or 'penalize' them, or deny them privileges afforded to other citizens. He wrote that Apache Stronghold had essentially asked the government to give them 'de facto' ownership of a 'rather spacious tract' of public land, which had to be rejected. Collins was joined by four other Trump appointees and an appointee of President George W. Bush. In his dissent Tuesday, Gorsuch wrote that the 9th Circuit 'encompasses approximately 74% of all federal land and almost a third of the nation's Native American population,' so its ruling that the government could destroy a sacred native site on federal land would now govern most if not all 'sacred-site disputes' in the country moving forward. He said that ruling would not just threaten native sites, but all religious sites on federal land — including many churches. Luke Goodrich, an attorney for Apache Stronghold and senior counsel at the religious rights law firm Becket, said it was 'hard to imagine a more brazen attack on faith than blasting the birthplace of Apache religion into a gaping crater,' and the court's 'refusal to halt the destruction is a tragic departure from its strong record of defending religious freedom.' Times staff writer David G. Savage in Washington contributed to this report.
Yahoo
23-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
The religious freedom case stuck in Supreme Court limbo
A version of this article was first published in the State of Faith newsletter. Sign up to receive the newsletter in your inbox each Monday night. As the Supreme Court prepared to hear its second religion case of the current term this week, drama was brewing around a different religious freedom battle that could be taken up soon. Three new documents have been filed with the court in recent days regarding Apache Stronghold v. United States, a case that's been stuck in Supreme Court limbo for around five months. The case centers on a proposed mining project in the Oak Flat area of Arizona, which is located about 70 miles east of Phoenix. In 2021, the federal government moved to begin mining in Oak Flat. Apache Stronghold sued to block the work, arguing that allowing mining in the area would violate federal religious freedom protections. '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,' explained Wendsler Nosie Sr. of Apache Stronghold in a press release in September. While the lawsuit has delayed the mining project, it hasn't yet succeeded in securing long-term protections for Oak Flat. Apache Stronghold lost at the district and circuit court levels, where judges said the planned mining project would not substantially burden Native Americans' religious exercise rights. In September, Oak Flat's defenders asked the Supreme Court to overturn those decisions and rule that religious freedom law protects against mining on sacred land. As usual, the court collected responses to that petition. What's strange is that the case has been stuck in the conferencing stage since late November. On Thursday, federal officials announced that, in the absence of Supreme Court action, they've continued to prepare for the mining project and may file the Final Environmental Impact Statement as soon as this summer. In a Friday letter, Apache Stronghold notified the Supreme Court about that announcement and urged the justices to move the case forward. 'This notice confirms the urgent need for this Court's review,' the letter said. Then, on Monday, attorneys for Resolution Copper, the mining company involved in the case, filed another new document with the Supreme Court, in which it argued that the government's Thursday announcement 'has no bearing on this case's suitability for review.' Later on Monday, the Justice Department filed its own letter and similarly argued that Thursday's announcement should have no bearing on the case. 'Nothing about the recent 60-day notice supports petitioner's arguments for further review,' the letter said. The Supreme Court will next discuss the case on Friday. At least four justices will need to vote in favor of hearing it for Apache Stronghold v. United States to make it onto the oral arguments schedule. Pope Francis has died. Here's how he'll be remembered How does the Catholic Church choose a new pope? What world leaders are saying about Pope Francis' death How storybooks on gender and sexuality sparked a major religious freedom battle What does society owe to Christians who celebrate Easter? Supreme Court gives surprise update on birthright citizenship battle U.K. Supreme Court issues unanimous ruling on the definition of 'woman' The latest on ICE raids in churches Aimee Semple McPherson was one of the most famous evangelists in the United States in the early 20th century. She paved the way for prominent televangelists of the 1970s and 1980s by revolutionizing the spread of religious messages over the radio waves. McPherson was a polarizing figure, in part because of her religious teachings and in part because of financial scandals. She's also been accused of faking her own kidnapping. McPherson is the subject of a new book, 'Sister, Sinner,' by Claire Hoffman. My colleague Jennifer Graham has a new profile out on Franklin Graham, a prominent evangelical leader and the son of Billy Graham. Among other topics, she explored his controversial relationship with President Donald Trump. Religious leaders generally don't enter the profession unless they're willing to conduct a funeral. Even so, many take on the role completely unprepared for that kind of work. To help his ministry students avoid that fate, one professor crafted an unexpected solution, according to Religion News Service: field trips to a cadaver lab. A new Gallup survey on religious preferences seems to confirm what Pew Research Center found in its latest Religious Landscape Study: The U.S. religious landscape has stabilized over the past five years. I helped with the Deseret News' coverage of the Boston Marathon on Monday morning. Three — yes, three! — former BYU runners finished in the top 10 of the men's race.
