A critical moment has arrived. Your action now will make a difference. In June 2002, "The Native American Sacred Sites Protection Act" (S. B. 1828), passed the California State Senate. In July 2002, Rep. Nick Rahall (D, WV) introduced "The Native American Sacred Lands Act" (H.R. 5155). Both of these bills are designed to counter growing threats to holy places like Quechan Indian Pass in California and Zuni Salt Lake in New Mexico. Your support is needed to pass these bills.
To rally support for this new state and federal legislation, and to ensure that they are strengthened and not weakened prior to passage, we are creating a Sacred Lands Defense Team. You signed on to our mailing list at a film screening or our Web site as a person interested in taking action, and that makes you a founding member of the Sacred Land Defense Team! We must act now to begin the long-term process of passing these bills into law! Your action is urgently needed because mining industry lobbyists are inundating the media with the message that these bills give Native Americans the power to veto development. We ask you to counter this corporate propaganda and support the honest intent of these bills, preserving cultural diversity, correcting historic injustice, and upholding the First Amendment religious rights of Native Americans. The California bill needs our immediate attention. It will be considered by the state Assembly in late August, perhaps as early as this week. The most immediate need is letters from California residents to your state Assembly representative. The Sacred Land Film Project Web site has everything you need: a sample letter and links to a complete list of Assembly members and contact information searchable by zip code. Please go to: http://www.sacredland.org/new.html Members of the Sacred Land Defense Team outside of California should focus on the federal bill, H.R. 5155. We must keep the pressure on! Write your Representatives and ask them to co-sponsor H.R. 5155 and hold hearings to seek comments from native people to help make The Native American Sacred Lands Act a strong and effective law. This is an opportunity to enact immediate, substantive change. The California bill would protect Quechan Indian Pass from Glamis Corporation's 1600-acre cyanide heap-leach gold mine. Thank you very much. Best regards, -- Christopher (Toby) McLeod Sacred Land Film Project http://www.sacredland.org P.O. Box C-151 La Honda, CA 94020 USA a project of Earth Island Institute In the Light of Reverence is distributed by Bullfrog Films: 1-800-543-3764 Visit and show your support for the Grass Roots Oyate http://members.tripod.com/GrassRootsOyate Clemency for Leonard Peltier. Sign the Petition. http://petitiononline.com/Release/petition.html ==^================================================================ This email was sent to: [email protected] EASY UNSUBSCRIBE click here: http://topica.com/u/?b1ddNB.b2HgmN Or send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] T O P I C A -- Register now to manage your mail! http://www.topica.com/partner/tag02/register ==^================================================================
