Oak Flat, currently a part of Tonto National Forest, has been a sacred place for the San Carlos Apache tribe for generations, used for coming-of-age ceremonies for young girls and for traditional acorn gathering. An addition to the most recent National Defense Authorization Act makes it part of a land swap between the Forest Service and Resolution Copper Mining, a subsidiary of two multinational corporations. This land has been protected from mining since the Eisenhower administration. We call on President Obama to use his designated authority to establish National Monuments in order to preserve this sacred place from destruction.



