And now:Ish <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> writes: From: BIGMTLIST <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Date: Sat, 12 Jun 1999 08:55:26 -0800 Subject: NPR ethnic cleansing topic >From BIGMTLIST Date: Sat, 12 Jun 1999 11:17:48 -0400 To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] From: Ari Halberstadt <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Subject: question: does this mean the us will now act morally at home? Hi Robert, I often listen to the show All Things Considered on National Public Radio. Yesterday they were soliciting emailed questions from listeners about the Kosovo crisis. I figured, why not send them a question about what the US government's actions towards the people of ethnic Albanians might mean for the people of Black Mesa. The show's email address is [EMAIL PROTECTED] For the Kosovo-related questions they requested that the word "question" appear in the subject line. Maybe if enough people contact them they might do a show on the subject of Black Mesa. Plausible tie-ins for the media include oppression directed at an ethnic group, enivronmental disasters, air polution over the Grand Canyon, Senator John McCain (R-AZ) who is a presidential candidate, etc. Following is the letter I emailed to NPR. To: All Things Considered <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Subject: question: does this mean the us will now act morally at home? From: Ari Halberstadt <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Hi, I enjoy listening to your show. Yesterday you requested questions from listeners about the Kosovo crisis. Now that the US has acted to protect people from persecution, will it now turn its eyes homeward and protect the oppressed Navajo and Hopi people of Black Mesa, Arizona? Very briefly, the US, in concert with tribal governments and mining companies, has been persecuting and harrassing the native people of Black Mesa in an attempt to force them to relocate. These are very traditional people, many of whom speak no English. They live a subsistence life off of the land, primarily through dry farming, raising sheep, and weaving. In 1974 the US divided what was formerly the Navajo/Hopi Joint Use Area between the two tribes, with the effect of forced relocation of some 16,000 Navajo who ended up on the Hopi side of the partition. The Navajo and Hopi had lived on this land for centuries, and their traditional elders had reached a new agreement on use of the land prior to the 1974 law. Yet the new partition was created to serve the interests of the mining companies, tribal councils, and US government. In 1996 the Congress accepted the "Accommodation Agreement", between the US government and Hopi tribe, designed to finalize the relocation of the people. Under this agreement, the Navajo cannot even bury their dead as their tradition teaches--even the dead cannot rest in peace. There is now a law (the Bennett freeze) prohibiting any construction or repair of property. They cannot even repair a broken window. People have had their wells capped, requiring them to travel many miles to obtain water. Their animals have been confiscated, placing them in great hardship. They have been blocked from grazing their livestock. The people fear for their lives and their property. They have no recourse in the US courts--which have abandoned them, apparently forgetting the moral obligations of one man to another. This is a process of annihilation against the people, except that today the US no longer sends in the cavalry to massacre people. The mining itself is an environmental disaster. The traditional peoples believe that they must care for the earth, for their mother. The mining companies do not care for the earth. Strip mines wound the earth with deep gashes. The extracted coal is transported using a slurry line to the Mojave generating station. The slurry line wastes tremendous amounts of fresh water from a natual underground aquifer, water that is so very valuable in the arid west. The generating station creates tremendous amounts of polution; one of its most visible effects is the haze it creates over the Grand Canyon. The relocation itself has been extremely costly to taxpayers, I have seen figures of $400 million over the last 25 years. Perhaps this waste of taxpayer money would appeal to some people: that the US government should not be wasting its money to relocate these people. But the money means nothing to me. How can you enumerate the fear in a person's eyes when their livelihood is taken? When your sacred spaces are trampled and gouged, how does one feel? What is the value of a lost culture, a way of life stolen from your children? It is the US government that is destroying a traditional way of life, that is causing persecution, fear, and hardship. The government is complicit in the destruction of a magnificent land, of prayer and enchantment. President Clinton can stop this. The relocation committee is directly under his authority. The Congress can stop this by repealing the 1974 and 1996 laws and by passing laws that show care and compassion for people, that take into account the desires of those living on the land and that allow those already expelled to return and live whole lives. My solace is that no bombs must explode, not a single person must be killed, and no wounds must be dug to restore balance, but powerful people must find reason and compassion and cease to be brutal to the gentle earth and to her people. Following are some references on the subject. * Sovereign Dineh Nation The organization formed by the Dine (Navajo) of Black Mesa. Sovereign Dineh Nation P.O. Box 1968 Kaibeto, AZ 86053 [EMAIL PROTECTED] My mother, Carol S. Halberstadt, is the press contact for the SDN and can provide a press packet, answer questions, etc. She can be reached at [EMAIL PROTECTED] * Broken Rainbow, directed by Maria Florio and Victoria Mudd, 1985. An excellent documentary on the relocation in Black Mesa. Won 1986 Oscar for best documentary. * Vanishing Prayer, a 16 minute mini-documentary about Black Mesa can be ordered through SEE, SDN's fiscal agent. Call 310-456-8300 or 456-3534. * Analysis of Dineh Case and Needs: Gabor Rona, an attorney with the Center for Constitutional Rights in New York has written an excellent introduction and analysis. http://www.magiccookie.com/activism/black-mesa/gabor-rona-analysis.html * Robert Dorman maintains an activist site with information and many links on Black Mesa. His moderated Big Mountain mailing list is a good source of timely news related to Black Mesa. http://www.theofficenet.com/~redorman/welcome.html -- Ari Halberstadt mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] <http://www.magiccookie.com/> PGP public key available at <http://www.magiccookie.com/pgpkey.txt> For Big Mountain and other activist internet resources, visit "The Activist Page" at http://www.theofficenet.com/~redorman/welcome.html Also, for great internet tools please visit: http://www.msw.com.au/cgi-bin/msw/entry?id=1271 ******************************************** This message was sent to you by Name: BIGMTLIST Email Address: [EMAIL PROTECTED] IP Address: office9.theofficenet.com Reprinted under the fair use http://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.html doctrine of international copyright law. &&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&& Tsonkwadiyonrat (We are ONE Spirit) Unenh onhwa' Awayaton http://www.tdi.net/ishgooda/ &&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&
