The Stream

A minefield of protests over Apache ‘sacred’ lands

An Arizona Native American tribe is challenging multinational miners over disputed land.

Sacred land, secret legislation, and billions of dollars. These are a few issues surrounding a controversy that has Arizona’s Apache tribe taking on copper mining giants. As part of an exchange approved by US Congress, 2,000 acres of federal land will be given to the Rio Tinto mining firm, who says the project will bring economic prosperity. Apache claim the site is holy and must be protected.

On this episode of The Stream, we speak with:

Roger Featherstone
Director, Arizona Mining Reform Coalition
azminingreform.org  

Vernelda Grant
San Carlos Apache Historic Preservation Officer
sancarlosapache.com

Pete Rios 
County Supervisor of District 1, Pinal County, AZ
pinalcountyaz.gov

Rick Grinnell
Vice President, Southern Arizona Business Coalition
soazbc.com

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