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Fast-tracked deal for a copper mine heightens existential fight for Apache

Oak Flat

Jodi King, a member of the San Carlos Apache Tribe, climbs U.S. Route 60 in Arizona toward Gonzales Pass on May 4 as part of a roughly 80-mile prayer run to save Oak Flat from becoming a copper mine. 

OAK FLAT � Carrying eagle feathers and chanting prayers, Western Apache runners hit the road on a roughly 80-mile journey this month to try to save their sacred land from being fast-tracked by President Donald Trump into a copper mine. This nationally watched battle, which hinges on religious freedom, awaits the U.S. Supreme Court.

The prayer run aimed to defend a 6-square-mile piece of land in rural Arizona outside of Phoenix called Chi’chil Biłdagoteel, or Oak Flat, where tribes have held ceremonies for centuries. The U.S. Forest Service, which owns the site, plans to trade a portion of it to a foreign-owned mining company, Resolution Copper, in exchange for other environmentally sensitive properties.

Oak Flat

Lian BigHorse, a daughter of Wendsler Nosie Sr., founder of Apache Stronghold, speaks outside the U.S. District Court in Phoenix before a hearing on May 7 during which a judge considered delaying a deal that would turn the sacred area of Oak Flat into a copper mine. 

Oak Flat

Nizhoni Pike (center) and her grandfather Wendsler Nosie Sr. (far right) join a press conference after a hearing in U.S. District Court in Phoenix on May 7. 

Oak Flat Prayer Run

Apache Stronghold founder Wendsler Nosie Sr. (center) runs along Tempe Town Lake in Tempe with his granddaughter Naelyn Pike and Morgun Frejo on May 5 as part of a roughly 80-mile prayer run meant to save Oak Flat from becoming a copper mine.

Oak Flat

Jerome Mann, a Diné man who chants at a May 6 protest in downtown Phoenix, calls the prayer run and protest to save Oak Flat healing. “I feel part of something bigger than myself,â€� he says. “I feel strong.â€Â�



KFF Health News is a national newsroom that produces in-depth journalism about health issues and is one of the core operating programs of KFF � the independent source for health policy research, polling and journalism.



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