Join The Caravan of Support To Big Mountain Resistance Communities of
Black Mesa, AZ. November 22-29, 2008!
Greetings from Black Mesa Indigenous Support,
We are excited to inform you that we are currently putting together
efforts to bring a caravan of work crews that will be converging from
across the country to support residents of the Big Mountain regions
of Black Mesa who, on behalf of their peoples, their sacred ancestral
lands, and future generations, continue to carry out their staunch
resistance to the efforts of the US Government, which is acting in
the interests of the Peabody Coal Company to devastate whole
communities & ecosystems, and greatly de-stabilize our planet’s
climate for the profit of an elite few.
At this moment the decision makers in Washington D.C. are planning
ways to expand their occupation of tribal lands to extract mineral &
other resources. The coal companies have a long history of and
continue to fund both the Republican and Democratic parties because
they have huge interests at stake. Peabody Coal, the world’s largest
coal company, is currently pushing through plans to massively expand
dirty coal strip-mining operations which has destroyed land and water
aquifers, completely dug up burials, sacred areas, and shrines
designated specifically for offerings, preventing religious practices.
By assisting with direct, on-land projects with these Sovereign
communities, you are helping families resist an illegal occupation
and to stay on their lands, who serve as the very blockade to coal
mining! “The Big Mountain matriarchal leaders always believed that
resisting forced relocation will eventually benefit all ecological
systems, including the human race.” Bahe Keediniihii, Dineh organizer
and translator states. “Continued residency by families throughout
the Big Mountain region has a significant role in the intervention of
Peabody’s future plan for Black Mesa coal to be the major source of
unsustainable energy, the growing dependency on fossil fuel, and
escalating green house gas emissions. We will continue to fight to
defend our homelands.”
With the guidance of Black Mesa residents, the aim of this caravan is
to bring support to their communities before the approaching cold
winter months. We expect volunteer work parties to help with firewood
chopping & hauling, do minor repair work, provide holistic health
care, and a few days of herding sheep. Volunteer work crews are
expected to be adequately prepared and self-sufficient prior to your
visit on Black Mesa, which is a very remote area in a high desert
terrain! (Be prepared for extreme weather, it will be cold!) Each
participant will need outdoor camping equipment, food, water, and
have appropriate attire for hands-on manual work. Please visit the
BMIS website for an in-depth guide on how to prepare for your stay
and what supplies are needed for work projects.
Host or attend regional organizational meetings in your area! The
Caravans’ coordinators are located in Prescott, Phoenix, Flagstaff,
Tuba City, Colorado, Portland, Ohio, New York, and San Francisco’s
Bay Area. The meeting locations and dates are being posted at the
BMIS website as coordinators set them up. This caravan will be in
addition to the annual Clan Dyken Fall Food & Supply Run. We strongly
urge participants to attend regional meetings & to pre-register to
help us estimate how many people to expect as well as to help us make
necessary accommodations. You can download a registration form off of
our website.
Ways you can help in the weeks leading up to the caravan:
– share information about the caravan & request materials from us and
help spread the word in your area.
– arrange/organize outreach events and/or fundraisers for gathering
supplies in your town or city with BMIS supporting you.
Ways you can help during the caravan:
– A number of volunteers are needed to help with shifts to be covered
for the opening & closing circles with a variety of different
responsibilities such as pre-setup, kitchen shifts, fire-wood duty at
main camp, and cleanup. Please contact BMIS at blackmesais@riseup.net
We are at a critical juncture and must take a stand in support of
communities on the front lines of resistance now! Indigenous & land-
based peoples have maintained the understanding that our collective
survival is deeply dependent on our relationship to Mother Earth.
Victory in protecting and reclaiming the Earth will require a broad
movement that can help bridge cultures, issues, & nations.
BMIS wishes for this caravan to be an important opportunity for
people of all backgrounds to listen & work with the families of Black
Mesa to generate more awareness that relocation laws & coal mining
need to stop, that these communities deserve to be free on their
ancestral homelands, & to come together to strengthen our solidarity
and find ways to work together to protect Black Mesa & our Mother
Earth for all life.
http://www.blackmesais.org
We can’t wait to see you in November!
Give Back To Mother Earth! Give Back To Future Generations!
In Solidarity,
Black Mesa Indigenous Support
If you have any questions or concerns, please contact us:
P.O. Box 23501, Flagstaff, Arizona 86002
Message Voice Mail: 928.773.8086
Email: blackmesais@riseup.net
Web: www.blackmesais.org
Black Mesa Indigenous Support (BMIS) is a grassroots, all-volunteer
organization dedicated to working with and supporting the indigenous
peoples of Black Mesa in their Struggle for Life and Land who are
targeted by & resisting unjust large-scale coal mining operations and
forced relocation policies of the US government.
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