February 26th, 1997

GENOCIDE ON BIG MOUNTAIN:
Last stand for a traditional Native American people

Legacy of Relocation

Contrary to the prevailing media view of a "land dispute" between the Hopi and the Navajo, the tragic situation of the Dineh at Big Mountain is, in many ways, simply a continuation of genocidal corporate and Federal policies that have devastated the tribe for the last 150 years.

Located in a remote stretch of the Four Corners region of the Southwest, a vast land of rugged, windswept beauty rich in precious minerals, Big Mountain rises from the center of a 2.5 million acre block of reservation lands long settled cooperatively by both the Dineh and the Hopi peoples.

The Hopi, an agrarian people, occupy dense permanent settlements in the lowlands of the area and rely largely on farming for subsistence. The Dineh, once a nomadic people who settled into the region around 1000 years ago, rely almost exclusively on sheep-herding and dry-crop farming. Traditional families, like those at Big Mountain, are desperately poor but largely self-sustaining, living without mechanized heating, electricity, or running water. Traditionals of both peoples regard themselves as guardians of the Earth.

In 1848, the lands inhabited by the Hopi and the Dineh were ceded to the U.S. by Mexico. In 1863, U.S. Army forces led by Colonel Kit Carson began a search and destroy campaign through the four corners repture or kill the entire Dineh nation. Thousands of Dineh were killed, and thousands more were forced to march the infamous "Long Walk" through 400 miles in the dead of winter to Fort Sumner in eastern New Mexico, where those who survived were imprisoned for five years. Those who escaped the Army took refuge in the crags and canyons of the region currently inhabited by the Dineh- a land bounded by four mountains long held sacred to their people. Those who survived imprisonment rejoined their people in the four mountains area.

In the 1940's and '50's, massive deposits of low-sulfur coal, oil, and uranium were discovered in the mountains and canyons settled by the Dineh. Giant mining interests laid siege to the land- staking claims, greasing palms, and setting up the first Navajo and Hopi Tribal Councils. Peabody Western Coal Co. emerged as the dominant interest in the region. Over 200 Dineh families were displaced through the late 1960's, when Peabody began constructing it's sprawling 103-sq. mile strip mining complex at Black Mesa just north of Big Mountain. Peabody's adjacent power plant, the nation's largest, furnishes electric power to several western states and generates so much air pollution that it was one of two man-made effects visible to the Apollo astronauts from the moon. It's slurry line, the only operating slurry in the nation, drains the aquifer for the entire four mountains region, reducing semi-arid range lands to desert and causing a constant water shortage for the Dineh and their priceless livestock.

In 1962, a U.S. District Court recognized the lands as a Joint Use Area (JUA) cooperatively developed by both the Hopi and the Dineh, with exception to the small portion occupied by permanent Hopi settlements.

In 1974, over the objections of Dineh and Hopi traditionalists alike, the U.S. Congress ordered the repartition of the reservation lands, leaving dozens of Dineh settlements, including those at Big Mountain, on the Hopi side of the former JUA. While 100 Hopi were living on what would become the Navajo Partition Lands, 13-15,000 Dineh were to be displaced by the repartition. The Government advised the Dineh at Big Mountain that they were to be relocated and began imposing austerity measures- limiting the number of livestock a family could own, banning the construction of new homes, prohibiting the repair of existing developments, and issuing restrictions on water use- in an attempt to starve them off their coal-rich land. Federal Marshals enforced these sanctions with seizures of land, livestock, buildings, wood tools, and the wood the Dineh depend on for heating and cooking. To date, over 10,000 Navajo have been forced to relocate to uranium-contaminated, Federally-subsidized shanty-towns known as "New Lands." Despite the intolerable living conditions created by these Federal sanctions, over 3,000 remain.

The Last "Long March"

Now the Federal Government is demanding that Dineh traditionals sign an "accommodation agreement" that would, among other indignities, seize the majority of their lands, preserve the harsh sanctions on livestock, wood, and other such basic necessities already in place, cede their sovereignty to the authority Tribal Council, and require permits for the observance of many religious duties and visitation from family members and others living outside the area. In exchange, the Dineh would be granted a 75-year "lease" allowing them to live on their ancestral lands but wresting them from future generations.

On February 26, the 9th Circuit Court in Phoenix will rule on a Dineh suit contesting the accommodation agreement. Presiding will be Judge Earl H. Caroll, an ultraconservative federal justice notorious for past anti-environmental and anti-Native rulings. If Caroll rules in favor of the agreement, as is expected, Federal Marshals will begin forcibly evicting those families which refuse to sign it.

The Dineh need our help. They need money to transport families to Phoenix and house them through the hearings. They need hands to herd their sheep. They need food, clothing, and heating supplies. They need our political influence and our prayers. And they need it now.

Get involved. Students for Dineh Sovereignty, a consortium of students and educators organizing support for the Dineh in Southwestern Ohio, is collecting donations locally for the Dineh at Big Mountain and has press packets and other materials available for people organizing support in other parts of the country. SDS can be reached by snail mail at the following address:

Students for Dineh Sovereignty
c/o Antioch College Community Government
795 Livermore St.
Yellow Springs, OH 45387
Or via E-Mail at:bigmnt@lorax.antioch.edu

Donations of clothes and money can be mailed directly to the Dineh care of Soverign Dineh Nation, a group representing the traditional Dineh families at Big Mountain, at the following address:

Sovereign Dineh Nation
P.O. Box 30453
Flagstaff, AZ. 86003

those assistance requests are really long-term needs that'll be just as dire after the decision and particularly in the weeks leading up to the 31st of March.

April 19th, 1997

Gold Mining Company's Threat to Western Shoshone Hot Spring

On March 13, 1997, Oro Nevada Mining Company, a Canadian gold mining firm, filed a new notice of operations with the Bureau of Land Management to conduct exploratory drilling for gold on the "Dan Claims." These claims lie near a hot spring, approximately 1 mile south of the Dann ranch in Crescent Valley, NV, and on the traditional lands of Western Shoshone grandmothers, Mary and Carrie Dann. The Danns and the Western Shoshone National Council have repeatedly informed Oro Nevada and the BLM that this site is of cultural and spiritual significance to the Western Shoshone and should not be disturbed. Despite this knowledge, Oro Nevada representatives did not notify anyone at the Dann ranch until the day before they planned to begin their drilling operations. Past exploratory drilling has destroyed other hot springs in the area. The hot spring adjacent to the Dann ranch is extremely vulnerable because of its low flow. The intrusion of mining activity onto this sacred area represents an attack on freedom of religion, a right guaranteed by the U.S.Constitution. Public pressure must be applied to force the BLM and Oro Nevada to respect the rights of the Western Shoshone and preserve sacred sites.

The 1863 Treaty of Ruby Valley

The U.S. Constitution states that treaties, agreements between sovereign nations, are the supreme law of the land. The 1863 Treaty of RubyValley between the U.S. and the Western Shoshone Naiton remains in effect, affirming the sovereign status of the Western Shoshone and recognizing the boundaries of their territory. The destruction of cultural sites and water sources was clearly not intended to be permitted through the Treaty of Ruby Valley. Oro Nevada's activities fall within the boundaries of the Western Shoshone Nation and violate the intent of the Treaty and the U.S. Constitution.

Although the Western Shoshone granted permission for the U.S. to mine on their lands in the Treaty of Ruby Valley, this does not mean that the proposed exploratory drilling is permitted under the Treaty. The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that treaties are to be interpreted as the native peoples would have understood them at the time of signing. The Western Shoshone in no way agreed to the scale, intensity and form of modern open pit heap leach goldmining. They also did not agree to the destruction of cultural/ spiritual sites through the mining process.

Oro Nevada Mining Company's Recent Assault

In the Spring of 1996, Oro Nevada Mining Company, a Canadian gold mining firm, began posting mining claims on most of the so-called public lands surrounding the Dann ranch. From the outset, the Dann sisters and the Western Shoshone National Council made it clear that claim stakes and other mining activities are not permitted in the hot spring's area. Oro President, Bob Jones agreed to this demand, yet continued to order his contractors to work in the hot spring's area. In July 1996 Oro Nevada purchased the neighboring Dean ranch, 48,276 acres of private land spread across the Dann's traditional use area. In total, Oro Nevada controls over 94,000 acres of land in Crescent Valley.

In August, 1996 Oro Nevada told the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) they were planning to conduct exploratory drilling in Section 10, T28N, R49E. Within this Section (one-square mile), is a hot spring that has been used by the Dann family for generations. Hot springs hold a very important place in Western Shoshone traditions. The mining company's plan to drill near the spring creates the potential to disturb not only this fragile water source, but also the oral history and traditional knowledge associated with it.

In response to Oro's planned activities, the Western Shoshone Defense Project (WSDP) mailed an "Action Alert" to our network of supporters from around the world, calling for letters, faxes and phone calls protesting the company's disturbance of this sacred place and their disregard for Western Shoshone land rights. The response was immediate. Scores of letters, statements and resolutions came from individuals, organizations and governments, including the International Indian Treaty Council and the Ely Shoshone Tribe. As a result of the pressure people placed on Oro Nevada, the company retracted its initial plan to drill in Section 10 containing the hot water. But that was not the end of the matter. On March 13, 1997 Oro Nevada once again filed a notice to drill in the section containing the hot spring. In this last notice Oro plans to conduct 6,000 feet of drilling for 6 holes. The drilling, scheduled to start in early March 1997, would continue through December 31, 1997.

July 1997

WSDP Basecamp Targeted,
Immediate Response Needed!

Western Shoshone Defense Project's Basecamp Targeted for Oro Drilling Immediate Phone Calls, Faxes and Letters Needed to the BLM on July 14-18, 1997

Current Situation:
On July 2, 1997 Oro Nevada Mining Company submitted a Notice of Intent to conduct exploratory drilling in two locations in Section 4, Township 28 North, Range 49 East in Crescent Valley. One of the drilling targets is right where the Western Shoshone Defense Project's cultural and spiritual encampment, created by the Western Shoshone National Council lies. This encampment holds ceremonial areas that continue to be used, including sweatlodges and a prayer pole, and is the site of the annual Western Shoshone Spring Gathering. Despite the importance, Western Shoshone concerns were never addressed. Drilling activity is scheduled to begin in July 1997. On July 8th, Bureau of Land Management (BLM) law enforcement agents stopped by to inform us, that indeed, Oro Nevada intends to put in a road and drill in Section 4.

Background:
In March 1996, Oro Nevada Mining Company, a Canadian gold mining firm began staking claims in most of the so-called public lands surrounding the Dann ranch. The Danns are Western Shoshone traditionalists who have been involved for decades in the Western Shoshone land rights struggle. In the past year Oro Nevada purchased all the private land surrounding the Dann family home and leased the so-called public lands surrounding the home from the U.S. government. Since Nov. 1996, Oro Nevada has continued drilling as close as one mile to the Dann family home. Desecration from roads and drilling thousand feet deep holes has already occurred near the hot spring used by the Danns for cultural/ spiritual purposes, despite the fact that the Dann family, and the Western Shoshone National Council have made it clear that this is not acceptable. Letters from Western Shoshone and supporting individuals, organizations and governments also emphasized the cultural/ spiritual importance of this site. The newly proposed action of drilling in Section 4 would add to the cumulative impacts to the Crescent Valley area.

The primary concerns are the ceremonial areas in the Western Shoshone Defense Project encampment. Points to include are:

• There are definite Western Shoshone cultural and religious concerns; these need to be adequately identified and addressed before the exploratory drilling can be approved by the BLM. Western Shoshone people with knowledge of the area need to be contacted and consulted. There has been no effort on the part of the BLM to obtain or consider Western Shoshone input.

• Section 4, Township 28 North, Range 49 East in Crescent Valley, is a sacred site with cultural and spiritual value. Exploratory drilling would cause desecration to this site.

• The BLM is not complying with the American Indian Religious Freedom Act, nor Native American consultation under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). • Section 4, is on Western Shoshone land, which has never been ceded to the U.S. government as recognized under the 1863 Treaty of Ruby Valley. Please contact the following officials immediately, and let your concerns be known to:

Summer 1997

Western Shoshone Call Attention to Canadian Gold Mining Company's Crimes on Traditional Lands

"To dig under the earth to get to that gold, to pump out that water to get to that gold, is a crime, it's a crime against humanity, a crime against life, the very life upon which all people depend on, not only people but we have other things out there-- we have the deer, we have the eagle, we have the rabbits, we have all life out there and the gold mining today is going to destroy that, it is destroying that, the life for the future generations is going to be gone."

In June 1997, Western Shoshone traveled to Toronto to protest a Canadian gold mining company's destructive exploratory drilling operations on traditional Western Shoshone lands in northern Nevada.

Background
In March 1996, Oro Nevada Resources, a recently formed Canadian mining company, began mining operations around the Dann family home in Crescent Valley, Nevada. The Danns are Western Shoshone traditionalists who have been involved in the Western Shoshone land rights struggle for decades. Last July, 1996, Oro Nevada purchased all the private land surrounding the Dann family home, as well as leased the so-called public lands surrounding the home from the U.S. Federal government. The U.S. government refuses to recognize Western Shoshone land rights, leasing much of the land to gold companies. Currently around 70% of gold produced within the U.S. comes from Western Shoshone land as recognized in the 1863 Treaty of Ruby Valley. The Western Shoshone have no control over this development and receive no royalties.

Oro Nevada Mining Company, a subsidiary of Oro Nevada Resources began drilling immediately adjacent to the Dann family home and next to a hot spring used by the Danns for bathing and spiritual/cultural purposes. The company has refused to honor Western Shoshone requests, including a tribal council resolution from the Ely Shoshone Tribe to stay clear of this area. For this reason, a protest at their Reno headquarters was held to highlight and counter Oro's behavior; this action received a great deal of publicity and support. During the protest, the Western Shoshone National Council gave notification to Oro Nevada concerning the injunction filed with the U.S. District Court of Nevada. This injunction calls for an immediate stop to Oro's drilling on Western Shoshone lands.

To continue to hold the company accountable for its disrespect of Western Shoshone land rights and to alert the Canadian public of the behavior of Canadian companies on Western Shoshone land, Western Shoshone representatives traveled to Toronto.

Toronto, Ontario
On June 24, 1997 Oro Nevada Resources held their first annual shareholders meeting at the Toronto Board of Trade. To a room of about a dozen people, mostly Oro company officials, Western Shoshone Defense Project staff, Chris Sewall and Russell Dann voiced strong concerns opposing the potential destruction of the hot spring and all life on Western Shoshone land. When asked if they were going to respect the wishes of the Dann family, Western Shoshone individuals and governments, not to disturb this cultural/ spiritual site, Oro responded with their typical reply: "We are complying with all local, state and federal regulations," absolving themselves of any moral responsibility.

Outside, 50 people gathered in solidarity with the Western Shoshone Nation. Colorful banners with strong statements demanding that Oro stop their destructive search for gold, brought public attention to Oro Nevada's crimes on Western Shoshone land. Raymond Yowell, Chief of the Western Shoshone National Council, the traditional Western Shoshone government, addressed the protesters, describing the impacts of Oro and other gold mining operations and thanking them for taking this stand with the Western Shoshone.

Carrie Dann spoke about how the gold mining operations are hurting the land for all life and future generations because the water table in this arid region is being dramatically lowered in the process of finding gold. This dewatering is the result of mining companies pumping out water in order to reach gold deposits which lie under the water table.

Relating the struggles of the Western Shoshone to protect life for future generations, with those of the indigenous people in Canada, Carrie closed with the declaration that: "This must stop - that's why we came out here, to talk to people, to conscientious people of all sorts, so that we can preserve the right for the future generations, the right to live, the right to live on this earth, to enjoy life, and that's all we're asking. Give them a chance, please give the young who aren't here yet the chance to live."

Local media came out to cover the story. An article in the national Canadian paper, the Globe and Mail, noted that Oro's shares fell 10 cents that day.

Immediate Situation
At the shareholders' meeting, Oro distributed their exploration update. Enclosed was a map indicating their plans not only to drill near the hot spring, but also in Section 4, with one drill target appearing in the same location as the Western Shoshone Defense Project's cultural and spiritual encampment, created by the Western Shoshone National Council. This encampment holds ceremonial areas that continue to be used and is also the site of the annual Western Shoshone Spring Gathering, which brings together Western Shoshone and their supporters for celebration and prayer.

On July 7, this plan was confirmed with a call to the local Bureau of Land Management (BLM), the federal agency responsible for approving notices to drill on "federal lands"--Western Shoshone traditional lands. Oro submitted their Notice on July 2 and the BLM had 15 days to respond; the scheduled date to beginning drilling is July 1997.

July 14-18, Western Shoshone individuals, organizations, and tribal governments, as well as supporting individuals, flooded the offices of the local and state BLM, asking them not to approve Oro's Notice, emphasizing that no Western Shoshone person has been contacted regarding this sacred site and any drilling activity would desecrate the area. This is a violation of the American Indian Religious Freedom Act, the Native American consultation under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), the National Historic Preservation Act and President Clinton's Executive Order 13007 on Sacred Sites.

Despite these flagrant violations, the local BLM maintains that they are complying with the law and that it is not within their authority to deny Oro their right to conduct exploratory drilling. Yet, in their response to Oro on July 24, they wrote: "Please make every effort to avoid this encampment in the conduct of your operations." Although this statement does not prevent drilling, it demonstrates a definite impact from the public outcry. Still, Oro Nevada may come in and drill any day now.

What You Can Do:
To prevent Oro from further desecrating Western Shoshone land it is necessary to address the big picture; we have begun to work with other communities and groups that are also fighting the international gold mining industry. This industry needs to be held accountable and the public must be made aware of where their gold jewelry is coming from: microscopic pieces of gold taken after pumping out immense quantities of groundwater and leached out by a cyanide solution from the crushed remains of whole mountains. The result of this process leaves behind destructive cultural, spiritual and environmental consequences for large regions and communities.

OCTOBER 31,1997

by Ursula Chanse

Background:
For the past year and a half a Western Shoshone family, the Dann family has been battling the continuing encroachment of a Canadian gold exploratory company. The Danns are traditionalists who have been involved in the Western Shoshone land rights struggle for decades. The U.S. government refuses to recognize Western Shoshone title to their land as outlined in the 1863 Treaty of Ruby Valley, a treaty of peace and friendship between the United States government and the Western Shoshone Nation. This disputed land accounts for the majority of gold production in the U.S. which is leased by the federal government to gold companies that destroy and contaminate the water and cultural sites.

Oro Nevada Mining Company, a subsidiary of Oro Nevada Resources, Inc. began drilling adjacent to the Dann family home and next to a hot spring used by the Danns for cultural/ spiritual purposes. The company has refused to honor Western Shoshone requests to stay clear of this area. Protests have been held at their Reno and Toronto headquarters to hold the company accountable for its disrespect of Western Shoshone land rights and alert the public to their crimes on Shoshone lands.

On October 25, over 20 people gathered for a morning ceremony at the hot spring near the Dann family home in Crescent Valley, NV, a hot spring which has focused international attention to the rampant gold exploration and destructive practices of gold mining in Shoshone country. Shoshone people from the Elko, Yomba, South Fork, Ft. Independence and Fallon communities and supporters came together to stand in solidarity with Carrie and Mary Dann who have been vocal in their opposition to the devastating gold mining operations occurring on traditional Western Shoshone lands.

The day after the ceremony, the drill rig contracted by the Canadian company, Oro Nevada Resources, Inc. slowly pulled itself down from the base of the mountains and out of Crescent Valley. Drilling in Section 10 containing the hot spring had begun on September 15, yet Oro’s drilling plan was not even close to complete when the drilling rig left. The "problem," as the public relations man explained to the Dann sisters, was that the drill rig kept hitting water, resulting in very expensive consequences for the company. On August 28, Oro’s rig hit a geyser which sprayed hot water 60 feet high into the air. It took Oro over 24 hours to handle the situation, finally having to resort to bringing in costly equipment from Salt Lake City, Utah, over 250 miles away. During this large water flow, owners of property with a hot spring miles down the valley noted that their flow was reduced for that same period.

Allowing water to flow while drilling has stopped is a violation of Nevada State Law. Other violations included contaminating water with hydraulic fluids at one of their drilling sites. The Nevada Department of Environmental Protection (NDEP) told the Western Shoshone Defense Project (WSDP) that they were going to issue Oro a Finding of Violation, only to retract it after the company agreed to voluntarily clean up the spill. The NDEP had stated that these violations happen all the time but no one ever reports them, falsely implying that reporting would make a difference. Apparently gold mining companies remain above the law, and these violations and contamination will continue to occur if laws are not enforced.

Another plan of Oro Nevada to drill in Section 4, containing the Western Shoshone Defense Project’s base camp and Western Shoshone ceremonial areas, last July, brought many letters of opposition from Shoshone and supporting individuals and organizations, including tribal resolutions from the Ely, Yomba, Duckwater and Timbisha Shoshone communities. Following this outpouring of concern, the public relations man told the Dann family that this drilling in Section 4 would not occur.

Meanwhile, under the table Oro Nevada has been attempting to conduct a land swap with the Bureau of Land Management. This plan, finally obtained by the WSDP through a Freedom of Information Act Request, was for 8,000 acres of Oro’s private property in the mountains, in exchange for 22,000 acres of Western Shoshone land (so-called public lands) in the flats. The lands desired by Oro Nevada include many cultural sites such as the ceremonial area in Section 4 and the hot spring in Section 10. If this land was acquired by Oro Nevada the Danns would be separated from much of their traditional use area by a band of private property several miles wide. The word from the BLM is that the land swap is not a priority- but we need to be attentive to this potential situation.

Strategies at this time include working with other communities and organizations fighting gold mining. As the cold weather comes in, it looks like, for the time being anyway, that Carrie and Mary will not have to look out their front door and see drill rigs desecrating their traditional lands. However, we know this is only a temporary reprieve and down the valley the gold rush continues.

What You Can Do:
1) Keep the Pressure on Oro Nevada and BLM officials. The BLM must respect and recognize Western Shoshone land rights and take action to prevent the destruction of cultural sites by mining activities. Oro Nevada Resources must respect Western Shoshone land rights and requests to stay out of areas of concern to the local Shoshone.

2) Contact the WSDP to stay updated on the situation, and more on want you can do to help. Donations both in-kind and financial are always needed (checks can be made payable to Western Shoshone Defense Project).

DECEMBER 1997

On November 10, 1997, Oro Nevada Mining Company issued a press release regarding its plans for the so called "Hand Me Down Project" adjacent to the Western Shoshone Dann Ranch in Crescent Valley, NV. According to the release, the first phase of their exploration operations is complete, and based upon the results they are seeking a joint venture partner to continue drilling even deeper holes around the Dann Ranch and near-by hot spring. When questioned as to what companies they were negotiating a deal with, Oro Nevada Vice President of Government Affairs Tibeau Piquet responded that they were speaking with Placer Dome, Barrick, and Newmont. These are all multi-national Mining companies with operations in Newe Sogobia (Western Shoshone territory). Continuing development at the "Hand Me Down Project" threatens the Western Shoshone community in Crescent Valley with the potential to contaminate the water supply and destroy many cultural sites. We need to sent a strong message to companies considering involvement with Oro Nevada, that they are trespassing on Native land. The Western Shoshone and the international community cannot stand by and let the Dann family be crushed under the weight of an adjacent open pit cyanide heap leach gold mine.

Please contact the following companies and express your concern that they may be considering involvement with Oro Nevada, a mining company with a known track record of disrespecting the concerns of local Western Shoshone.