Wednesday, June 11, 2025

Last Friday, a federal judge in Phoenix denied a pair of motions seeking preliminary injunction to stop the Oak Flat land swap between the U.S. Forest Service and the multinational mining company Resolution Copper. KJZZ’s Gabriel Pietrorazio has details. Federal Judge Dominic Lanza considered their pleas “premature” amid a nearly two-hour hearing at the Sandra Day O’Connor Courthouse. In fact, Lanza had admittedly made up his mind before plaintiffs – including the San Carlos Apache Tribe and a coalition of conservation and recreation groups – showed up in court. The judge said granting their request would subvert an act of Congress. However, Lanza also ruled that the Forest Service could not proceed with the land exchange until the 60-day mark after the government publishes its final environmental impact statement for the proposed copper mining project. The federal agency is expected to release that report later this month. Roughly 73 square miles of forestland in Northern California have been returned to the Yurok Tribe in what’s being called the largest land-back conservation project in state history. Christina Aanestad reports. The land back more than doubles the Yurok Tribe’s ancestral land holdings, including salmon habitat and areas of cultural and spiritual significance. Tiana Williams-Clausen is the Yurok Tribe’s wildlife department director. “So re-acquiring landscapes like this allows us to heal, to work towards healing a wound that was inflicted not only on the lands but our hearts when these lands were taken away from us.” Josh Kling of Western Rivers Conservancy says his organization bought and transferred land to the tribe in phases, raising $56 million for the conservation deal. “We’re thrilled to announce that we’ve transferred the final phase of land to the Yurok tribe and completed creation of the Blue Creek Salmon Sanctuary and the Yurok tribal community forest.” Historically, the Yurok Tribe had fished, hunted, and gathered in this watershed flanked by coastal forests. The Yurok Tribe lost 90% of its territory through Gold Rush massacres and diseases from settlers. Timber companies owned and managed the land for over a century. Tim Hayden is the Yurok Tribe’s deputy executive director of natural resources. “This is an incredible opportunity for the tribe to really assert its self-determination, manage its own resources for the benefit of both fish and wildlife, to restore the tribe’s land base, provide access for ceremonial and subsistence and gathering needs of the tribe.” Salmon and trout populations were once the third largest in the Klamath. Now with a dam removal complete, there’s hope those populations will rebound. Pergish Carlson is a river guide with the Yurok. “I know that generations from here will really see the benefits of it even when I’m gone or whatever. And that’s what I always kind of like smile about and think about, you know, a lot is that the future generations, how good it could be even from now.” (Photo: Loco Steve / Wikimedia) And on this day in 1971, federal officers removed the last few Native activists from Alcatraz. Launched November 20th, 1969, the “Occupation of Alcatraz Island” was carried out by the group, Indians of All Tribes. They claimed Alcatraz was rightfully theirs through the 1868 Treaty of Fort Laramie, and by the federal government’s closing of the prison island in 1963, designating it surplus federal property. At its peak, the occupation saw roughly 400 Natives and allies. Celebrities like Jane Fonda, Marlon Brando, and Jonathan Winters all visited. In the final months, power and telephone services were cut off, and a young girl fell to her death, devastating her parents and causing them to leave. Despite setbacks, many see this occupation as the launchpad of modern American Indian activism.   Get National Native News delivered to your inbox daily. Sign up for our daily newsletter today.