Copyright © 1999 NLThomas
All Rights Reserved

Report on the 1999 food and supply run to the "resistas" of Big Mountain.

The communities of Northern California and Southern Oregon have once again demonstrated their solidarity with the People of Big Mountain in giving of themselves and their abundance. Thanks in part to a couple of very generous donors and in general to the support in time, prayers and finances of a great many people we were able to bring a good amount of food and supplies to more than 100 families on Black Mesa and the surrounding country. We honor the altar of the people and their struggle to keep it from being destroyed by the greed of transnational corporations and the US gov't.

This is the story of the run as seen through these eyes. There are many more perspectives and I hope we will hear from more of the folks who participated in the effort as the time passes. This report should provide the contributors to our effort with some idea of how their prayers and funds have been deployed. The People send you their thanks.

The Revive the Beauty Way Tour ended with a three day run up the North Coast of California. Nov 18 found us at Palookaville in Santa Cruz. The community there came out strong for the People with many students from UCSC in attendance. The next night we played at Humboldt State University in Arcata where we connected with many of our old friends from Earth First! Who are currently in Seattle battling the WTO and trying to keep out of the tear gas. The final show of the tour brought us to the Mateel Community Center in Redway California. This has been one of the most supportive communities over the years and they did not shirk their responsibilities this time.

Monday, November 22, 1999 we headed out for Tacopah California where the plan was to overnight at Poh-Ha-Ba, Corbin Harney's native healing center at the southern end of Death Valley. There we connected with a 5x10 U Haul trailer full of food from Mountain Peoples Warehouse. Many thanks to the folks at Indigenous Peoples Project and Mountain Peoples for their hard work on getting that portion of the food donation togeather. The kind folks of Shundahai Network had supper waiting for us upon our arrival (much later than we'd hoped) and even served us up a good breakfast to get us on the road to Flagstaff the next morning.

In typical Bush League fashion we staggered into Flagstaff a few at a time. The band had so much trouble with vehicles that we had to cancel the show at Monsoons and held our meeting with local supporters and representatives of the People in the conference room of the Monte Vista Hotel. There we began to gather information that would help us determine the pressing needs of the people and what we could do to help. It was wonderful to see old friends and meet with the many folks who had been names and voices only until then. We owe many thanks to the activists at Black Mesa Indigenous Support for pulling togeather all the Flagstaff and on the land organizing that makes it possible for us to drop in over a short period of time and get some practical work done for the People.

On Wednesday morning most of the group left for the land with the food and supplies we'd gathered from the West Coast. Meanwhile a few of us stuck around Flagstaff to purchase more food and to scout out building supply yards for the best deals. The Northern Arizona Food Bank kicked down a big load of vegies and dog food. When the buying was done we needed a semi truck to haul the load up to Big Mountain which the Food Bank generously provided along with a driver. After seeing the semi off and tying up a few loose ends in Flagstaff the buying committee started off for the Mountain as the sun began to set. Because of bad roads the semi could only get within a couple of miles of Anna Mae Camp, so we had to unload on the dirt road of Hwy 41 in the dark and cold night. Spirits were high tho, and the job was done with a minimum of hassle and grumbling.

Thursday morning found us assessing the amounts of food on hand and dividing it up into 120 units for distribution. That job done, we started putting the units into pickup trucks, vans and autos for distribution across the many square miles of the altar. The work would take us two days to complete as we spread out from the center of the resistance at Anna Mae Camp Sundance Grounds to bring not only the food and supplies but the message that there are a lot of folks out here that know what is being perpetrated on the People and that we stand in solidarity with them in their struggle to maintain their ancestral lands and their traditional way of life. The smiling faces that greeted the messengers were the reply of a people strengthened in their resolve to hang on for yet another winter in the face of oppression and psychological warfare.

The group from Colorado had been out on the land for several days before we got there. Several of them helped us unload the semi in the sub freezing night on the Turquoise Hiway, and we had an informal conference one evening around the fire. It was good to have more interaction with these folks this year. They have been coming out to the land as long if not longer than we have and I'm sure we'll have lots of areas where we can coordinate our efforts in the future.

The People need more than food to survive the onslaught of avarice that threatens to swallow them. The legal battle is still not over. There is a long winter struggle ahead and many supporters are expected to come out to the land. They will need shelter and some organization. Transportation for elders to get to meetings and hearings is problematic. It is still illegal to gather fire wood on the HPL with out the impossible to get permit, so it must be trucked in from a distance or taken by stealth. We have tried to address each of these situations with positive action as well as some funding.

I would like to acknowledge the graciousness of our hosts at Anna Mae Camp. Our Grandma's and Aunties greeted us with open arms and cooked us some wonderful stews and fry bread. The beautiful smiles and serene manner of the People enveloped us in familial warmth. They gave us a couple of rugs that will be on display as raffle prizes at our future fund raising events. With out the help of these people on the land we would not be able to get the food to so many homesteads in such a short time.

Many thanks to all the folks who helped us put togeather each of the shows along our tour. We couldn't have done it with out you. Please know that your prayers have been carried to the People and we carry their prayers back to you. Know that as long as they must struggle to hold on to their land and way of life, we will be in the struggle with them. In these times of battle between what is legal and what is just, we stand togeather with our Dine brothers and sisters. In the spirit of Gold Tooth.