[News] Takeover in Hopiland - A Dirty New Low for Peabody Coal

[Anti-Imperialist News]

http://www.counterpunch.org/norrell10052009.html

October 5, 2009


Takeover in Hopiland

A Dirty New Low for Peabody Coal

By BRENDA NORRELL

Former chairmen of the Hopi Nation have revealed 
that the Hopi Tribal Council has been taken over 
by a pro-Peabody Coal faction. Further, Hopi 
reveal that the tribe's attorney and the media 
are being used to carry out Peabody Coal's agenda.

Peabody Coal used the same tactic originally to 
seize Black Mesa for coal mining and bring about 
Navajo relocation for coal mining, by way of 
attorney John Boyden, who worked for Peabody and 
the Hopi Tribe. The media was also coopted in the 
original seizure of Black Mesa by Peabody Coal, 
with the media cheerleading and proclaiming the 
so-called Navajo Hopi land dispute.

When the Hopi Tribal Council banned 
"environmentalists," and Navajo President Joe 
Shirley, Jr., agreed last week, Navajos and Hopis 
defending the land were shocked and appalled.

Vernon Masayesva, executive director of Black 
Mesa Trust and former Hopi Chairman, points out 
that Hopi are true stewards and the Hopi Tribal 
Council has been taken over by a pro-Peabody Coal 
faction. Masayesva, in a letter to Arizona 
Republic, also points out that the newspaper is 
printing only one-side of the story at Hopi, 
press releases written by a former employee of the newspaper.

Tina May, former senior editor of Arizona 
Republic, is now the Hopi Tribal Council's press 
officer. Masayesva said the Arizona Republic's coverage is biased.

"Arizona Republic has been carrying news releases 
by Tina May, public relations officer for the 
Hopi Tribal Council. She is reporting only one 
side of the story. We understand she is a former 
employee of the Arizona Republic," he said.

"The real story on Hopiland, that is yet to be 
revealed, is the take-over of the government by 
pro-Peabody legislators with the support of their 
legal counsel, Scott Canty, and the ensuing 
corruption and abuse of power by an illegally 
constituted Council," Masayesva said.

Referring to the ban, Masayesva said, "To be a 
Hopi is to be a conservationist, a caretaker and 
a steward of planet earth. So, by implication, 
the Council has banned all Hopi people from their land."

Masayesva said the Grand Canyon Trust came to 
Hopiland to install photovoltaic panels on homes 
that have no electricity. "It is likely the 
project will now be suspended, thanks to our Hopi Tribal Council."

Further, Masayesva said forty individual Hopis 
have filed a challenge to the U.S. Office of 
Surface Mining’s decision to issue a Life-of-Mine 
permit to Peabody. The permit would allow Peabody 
to continue the destructive surface mining for an 
additional 15 years after 2011.

"Of special concern to the Hopi is the continuing 
drawdown of N-aquifer groundwater and the 
accidental and deliberate destruction of 
archaeological sites, burial sites, petroglyphs and other cultural resources."

Klee Benally, Navajo, points out that the US 
puppet tribal governments are continuing to 
appease the United States and corporations. 
Benally responded to Navajo President Joe 
Shirley, Jr.'s comments, stating that 
environmentalists are not welcome on Navajoland.

Benally said, "I would expect this type of 
declaration from totalitarian government 
dictators, not those who are democratically 
elected leaders of Tribal Nations. Considering 
the history of colonization and BIA established 
puppet governments on Native American lands, 
Shirley's statement is not surprising.

"Attempting to silence the voice and limit the 
rights of Dine' people to protect their life, 
land and liberty is not sovereignty, it is in the 
direction of totalitarianism."

Benally points out that Shirley uses the catch 
word "sovereignty" to defend his stance against 
anything Shirley disagrees with. Benally said, 
"Does sovereignty really mean being dependent on 
non-renewable energy that destroys Mother Earth, 
pollutes drinking water and air and compromises 
our holy covenant with nature? Does it mean being 
dependent on casinos and outside corporate interests?'

Benally also reminds Shirley of Benally's 
grandmother, the late Roberta Blackgoat resisting 
relocation, who defended the land until her end on this earth.

"My grandmother Roberta Blackgoat once said, ‘I 
know each tree, each plant that grows right 
there. And they know me. The children, 
grandchildren, great grandchildren need to be 
right there. We need them to get back to the land 
and live on our ancestors' land.' She said that 
the ‘relocatees' die of ‘worriness,' ‘missing 
their traditional food and not knowing where to 
go to pray.' Blackgoat said, ‘As long as I live, 
I'm not going to sign' and continued to demand 
‘(Peabody) stop destroying the Mother Earth's 
liver and blood; the coal and the water.'"

"Until her passing she resisted relocation, still 
abandoned by the Navajo Nation government, 
‘unwelcome' by the Hopi Tribal government, and as 
a testimony to the injustices of US law.

"Would she still be unwelcome in her homeland Mr. 
Shirley --- as an environmentalist, that is a woman who loved her Earth?"

In response to the Hopi Tribal Council ban, Alph 
Secakuku, Hopi council representative of 
Sipaulovi (Second Mesa), spoke of the sacred 
foundation and destiny of the Hopi people.

"We made a sacred covenant with Maasaw, our 
Supreme Being, to be good stewards of the Fourth 
World we live in today. We, as people, all have 
the responsibility of being Caretakers of Mother 
Earth. You care for it and take from it only what 
you need, and it will provide for you.

"I never thought I would see the day when being 
‘Hopi' meant being anti-environment, pro-big 
corporate energy, and actually promoting 
pollution and global warming in favor of dollars/money."

Secakuku said the ban was the result of the 
current political coup in the council.

"It is a sad day for Hopi/Tewa people, and I am 
disappointed. We, the Hopi/Tewa people, have 
worked closely for many years with our allies 
from the environmental community to protect 
sacred lands from development and to stop uranium 
mining from poisoning our water. Water is life, 
therefore, it is sacred. We will continue to work 
together - tribal communities and other clean 
energy jobs advocates - to bring green economic 
development to our lands that respects our air and water."

Former Hopi Chairman Ben Nuvamsa also points out 
the illegality, absurdity and indignity of the Hopi Tribal Council's ban.

"For the record, Indian tribes have no 
jurisdiction over non-Indians on reservation 
lands (see Oliphant v. Suquamish). On the Hopi 
Reservation, only the Tribal Chairman has the 
authority to sign an exclusion order under Tribal 
Ordinance 46. So without a Tribal Chairman, no 
one can sign such an order. Without meeting these 
requirements, the resolution passed by this group 
is nothing more than a mean-spirited statement.

"Our teachings as Hopi and Tewa people dictate 
that we should welcome everyone. It is not Hopi 
to exclude anyone. As Hopi and Tewa people, we 
are raised to be good stewards of our lands so we 
are all ‘environmentalists' by our cultural teachings and practices.

"The ‘environmentalists' have stood by the Hopi 
Tribe when we opposed the making of artificial 
snow on our sacred Nuvatukyaovi (San Francisco 
Peaks). They assisted in our opposition to the 
proposed uranium mining near the Grand Canyon. 
They assisted in securing protections for the 
American Bald Eagle. So why the opposition to 
‘environmentalists' now? Could it be financial 
and corporate greed? Absolutely," he said in a statement.

Nuvamsa points out that it the elected tribal leaders compromising sovereignty.

"Some say the ‘environmentalists' are 
compromising our tribal sovereignty. I disagree. 
It is our own ‘tribal leaders' that are the worst 
violators of compromising our sovereignty."

Navajos at Black Mesa Water Coalition, creating 
green jobs on Navajoland, also responded.

"We believe that President Shirley is misinformed 
as to the benefits of coal mining and coal-fired 
power plants and out of touch with the kind of 
economy the Navajo people want," said Wahleah 
Johns, also a Navajo citizen and Co-Director of Black Mesa Water Coalition.

"Our organization has been working to support the 
traditional lifeways of weavers, ranchers, 
artisans and a new clean energy economy. After 
over 30 years of coal development on the Navajo 
reservation, most of our people still live below 
the national poverty line, and now there are 
increasing health problems due to fossil fuel 
development pollution and global warming."

Black Mesa Water Coalition said that in July of 
2009, the Navajo Nation 21st Council officially 
adopted the Navajo Green Economy Commission and 
Fund to begin a process of diversifying the 
Navajo economy and building thousands of 
well-paying Navajo jobs that do not pollute.

"The Black Mesa Water Coalition formed the Navajo 
Green Economy Coalition, consisting of both 
Native and non-native organizations and 
individuals. This Coalition's partnership with 
the Navajo Nation's Speaker of the Council, 
Lawrence T. Morgan, was a large contributor to 
the successful establishment of a Navajo Green 
Economy plan and is a model for how tribal 
governments and tribal citizen's groups can work together."

Calvin Johnson, Navajo in Leupp, Arizona, on the 
Navajo Nation, fighting the poisoning of the 
water, air and land by coal mines and power 
plants, said he was appalled by Shirley's 
statement. Johnson told Shirley that blaming and 
disrespecting traditional grassroots people is not the answer.

Johnson said, "We are suppose to protect our 
people and mother earth from harmful contaminants 
that cause numerous health diseases, destroy 
sacred sites and deplete and contaminate precious water resources."

Johnson said the Navajo Nation has been providing 
misinformation about the proposed Desert Rock 
power plant. There is no such thing as a clean 
coal fired power plant. He said no machine can 
remove 100 percent of the sulfur, mercury and 
other pollutants from coal and burn it free of emissions.

The Sierra Club said it is an honor to work with Hopis and Navajos.

"The Sierra Club is honored to work with our 
tribal partners in transitioning to a clean 
energy future, including the Black Mesa Water 
Coalition, Dooda Desert Rock, Hopis Organized for 
Political Initiatives (H.O.P.I.), the Navajo 
Green Economy Coalition, To' Nizhoni Ani, 
C-Aquifer for the Diné, and other community 
organizations," the Sierra Club said in a statement.

While the mainstream media, including Associated 
Press, continues to distort and censor the voices 
of the Navajo and Hopi people, the full statements are online at Censored News:

<http://www.bsnorrell.blogspot.com>http://www.bsnorrell.blogspot.com/

Brenda Norrell has been a news reporter covering 
Indian country and Mexico for 27 years, serving 
as a staff reporter for Navajo Times, Lakota 
Journal and Indian Country Today. She served as a 
stringer for AP for five years and USA Today for 
seven years, covering the Navajo Nation and 
federal courts. She was censored and terminated 
by Indian Country Today in 2006 and created 
Censored News. She is a contributor to CounterPunch.




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