In Northern Nevada, a multinational company plans to break ground on a new 1,000-acre lithium mine that would destroy Shoshone and Paiute People sacred land at Thacker Pass in order to extract a central component for electric car batteries. Thacker Pass has deep spirtual significance as its a burial ground for dozens of Indigenous who were murdered by US soldiers in the late 1800s.
Indigenous spritual sites in the United States and their spiritual significance are frequently disregarded because there are no overarching legal protections for sacred Indigenous spaces due to instiutionalized oppression. The legacy of colonial violence is embedded within our legal systems. A supreme court decision in 1988 set a fairly destructive tone for the future of protecting sacred spaces. The court approved the construction of a road through a section of a national forest considered sacred. The court stated that the first amendment’s protection of citizens’ right to practice their religion does not prohibit such an action.
Hallie Golden, "Indigenous tribes tried to block a car battery mine. But the courts stood in the way", contributed by Morgan Sarao, The Energy Rights Project, Platform for Experimental Collaborative Ethnography, last modified 21 October 2021, accessed 23 April 2024. https://energyrights.info/content/indigenous-tribes-tried-block-car-battery-mine-courts-stood-way
Critical Commentary
In Northern Nevada, a multinational company plans to break ground on a new 1,000-acre lithium mine that would destroy Shoshone and Paiute People sacred land at Thacker Pass in order to extract a central component for electric car batteries. Thacker Pass has deep spirtual significance as its a burial ground for dozens of Indigenous who were murdered by US soldiers in the late 1800s.
Indigenous spritual sites in the United States and their spiritual significance are frequently disregarded because there are no overarching legal protections for sacred Indigenous spaces due to instiutionalized oppression. The legacy of colonial violence is embedded within our legal systems. A supreme court decision in 1988 set a fairly destructive tone for the future of protecting sacred spaces. The court approved the construction of a road through a section of a national forest considered sacred. The court stated that the first amendment’s protection of citizens’ right to practice their religion does not prohibit such an action.