Grand Canyon

Native American View Of The Grand Canyon’s Centennial Celebration

March 2, 2019 Staff, Asunow.asu.edu Educate! Grand Canyon, Indigenous Peoples, Land

Most people view the Grand Canyon as a place of recreation; they go there to sightsee, hike, raft and camp. But the people who have lived there for millennia see it differently. Native Americans view the Grand Canyon through myriad lenses: As a land tied to their place of origin. As a place to be both feared and revered. As a place of opportunity. As an inspiration for cultural expression. As a locale that is their history. As a holy site. And they view it territorially among themselves. All these elements run as deep and as wide as the canyon.

Why We’re Investigating Grand Canyon Uranium

July 9, 2017 John Ahni Schertow and Garet Bleir, www.intercontinentalcry.org Resist! Environment, Grand Canyon, Indigenous Rights, Mining, Uranium

By John Ahni Schertow and Garet Bleir for InterContinental Cry. In 2012, US Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar announced a twenty-year ban on mining surrounding the Grand Canyon National Park. It was one of the biggest wins for the environment that year. After all, 10,000 uranium mining claims threatened to turn this iconic natural landscape into a radioactive wasteland. The moratorium put an end to all that -- at least for the next 20 years. Unfortunately, our celebration of the historic decision had consequences. It drowned out two pressing facts that the media urgently needed to focus on: there were at least four old uranium mines near the Grand Canyon that could be reopened despite the moratorium; and there were still hundreds of abandoned uranium mines on Navajo (Diné) land that needed remediation.

Grand Canyon Is Our Home. Uranium Mining Has No Place Here

July 3, 2017 Carletta Tilousi, www.theguardian.com Resist! Grand Canyon, Mining, Uranium

By Carletta Tilousi for The Guardian - The Havasupai – “people of the blue-green waters” – live in Supai Village, located at the bottom of the Grand Canyon. Today our lives and water are being threatened by international uranium mining companies because the US government and its 1872 mining law permit uranium mining on federal lands that surround the Grand Canyon. In 1986, the Kaibab national forest authorized a Canadian-based uranium company to open Canyon mine, a uranium mine near the south rim of Grand Canyon national park. The Havasupai tribe challenged the decision but lost in the ninth circuit court of appeals. Miners were just starting to drill Canyon mine’s shaft in 1991 when falling uranium prices caused the company to shut it down for more than two decades. Havasupai ancestors share stories of the sacredness of the Grand Canyon and all the mountains that surround it. They have instructed us to protect the waters and the mountains from any environmental contamination. That’s why we stand firm against any uranium mining in the Grand Canyon region. As uranium prices began to rise again in 2007, the uranium company reopened three closed mines on lands managed by the Bureau of Land Management, north of the Grand Canyon.

Obama Will Not Declare Grand Canyon A Monument

January 7, 2017 Miriam Wasser, www.phoenixnewtimes.com Educate! Barack Obama, Grand Canyon

By Miriam Wasser for Pheonix New Times - Rep. Raul Grijalva announced in a written statement today that he has received word from the White House that President Barack Obama does not plan to designate the Greater Grand Canyon National Heritage Monument in the few days he has left in office. "I can only express my profound disappointment," Grijalva wrote. “The Grand Canyon is one of the world's most iconic and popular natural places, not just for its beauty but for its importance to tribal culture and history." The proposed 1.7-million-acre monument would have permanently protected the fragile ecosystem of the Grand Canyon watershed from uranium mining and some old-growth logging...

Pave Grand Canyon, Monsanto’s Clean Slate & Activists In City Hall

March 10, 2016 Staff, www.occupy.com Resistance Report Grand Canyon, Monsanto

By Staff of Occupy - This week, the Grand Canyon is so breathtaking and gorgeous that we just can't stand it any longer. Let's talk about the two big plans to destroy this pristine beauty and what you can do about it. Next up, Monsanto is poisoning people, but that's nothing new. And after four decades, one measly clause in a house bill could wipe their legal slate clean. Finally, Daniel Lee has occupied the streets, organized and appeared at rallies and actions for years. Now, he's taking that fight into a bid for political office. But first, an ode to a stoic beauty.

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