06/21/2026
Osiyo,
I believe this Catholic shrine should be protected.
But if we are going to protect sacred places, then we must protect all sacred places.
For generations Indigenous peoples have watched sacred mountains, burial grounds, ceremonial sites, and water sources destroyed for mines, pipelines, dams, highways, and now border infrastructure. Oak Flat is threatened for a copper mine. Pipelines have been forced through Indigenous lands and beneath waters that sustain our communities despite our objections.
As an elder in a Native traditional community, and as someone who grew up in Picher, Oklahoma, on the Quapaw Reservation—one of the most environmentally devastated places in America—I have watched this happen for eighty-four years. I have seen sacred places, communities, and the natural world sacrificed in the name of progress, profit, and convenience.
If a sacred place deserves protection because it is holy to one people, then the same principle must apply to places that are holy to Native peoples. Sacredness is not determined by who arrived first or who has the most political power.
Protect this shrine. But also protect Oak Flat. Protect our waters. Protect our sacred places. Equal respect is the only honest standard. Nudvwiv Aninoquisi (star singer)
https://l.facebook.com/l.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.nytimes.com%2F2026%2F06%2F21%2Fus%2Fpolitics%2Fborder-wall-catholic-church-mount-christo-rey.html%3Fsmid%3Dfb-share%26fbclid%3DIwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAc3J0YwZhcHBfaWQQMjIyMDM5MTc4ODIwMDg5MgABHtidhGQFDsvofbZuGGO2tZScDe7Vbh3-CZMU_JyOf-pbSf3satAVbL_qEu4Q_aem_RtR5yJIJa3hvxL7ZVtlsdg&h=AUBym3nNl44ry9t7JqWZkPbV3tkjpy3iLmkapsUAQTtYc2Opab7GFqDWiS_SdTvOv6SSHa44VReRNrKdMRlp4DZ5nhjRdstljMQz0EvtpU417W8s6uqkerEGBtnp3hytA3uCR8TQWUMadRro40xZTV_9usWv-A&__tn__=H-R&c[0]=AUDFpOvogv_JFWWEws3nnqDSCR9ZrQevQOkaMuQv3RwuOPLW6-zsJ2pzDjnKhoYSnolEG22HnXZ5kTyjwzq0tyEy-m1qms8y88OwWbjI1FflqzpvNln-qnyz1ANXCWtBLQxXTN_cALTI-L-bCJejDEtwajWmGugYpVFhn-frnjNIE5qM0iY
In a battle of symbols, the Catholics of Las Cruces, N.M., argue that religious freedom should stop the wall from scarring a mountain that has attracted pilgrims for nearly a century.
