Untitled Document

Black Mesa Contacts

This page is my attempt to bring some logical order and cohesion to the many people and
organizations that you can contact in your efforts to help the people of Black Mesa. This section
will expand as I learn more about the options available to us. I have also setup discussion forums in
which you may share comments about your contacts and efforts.

Note: This page is brand-new (created on February 26, 1999) and still contains many blank areas and
ommissions. I am researching the various different contacts and welcome any suggestions for additional
contacts and information. Especially needed are sample phone scripts and letters.

The most direct contacts are government officials and offices that are carrying out and responsible
for the relocation activities. At the federal level these include the Office of Navajo and Hopi
Relocation, the Department of the Interior, and the Bureau of Indian Affairs. At the tribal level
these include the Hopi and Navajo Tribal Councils.

The best solution to the problem is to pass federal legislation to stop and reverse the relocation
activities. The senate and house committees on Indian affairs are responsible, among other things,
for drafting legislation relating to Indian affairs. The senate committee, for instance, includes 14
members with diverse backgrounds. If you are a citizen of the US you may also contact your own
elected representatives. The president of the United States set up the Office of Navajo and Hopi
Relocation. This office answers directly to the President, so that any presidential orders would have
direct and immediate impact.

Several companies are profiting at the expense of the people and land. Black Mesa contains large
coal deposits that are being stripmined by the Peabody Coal Company, which is now owned by
Lehman Brothers. Public pressure might help encourage these companies to mend their ways.

Contents

Federal Government
Executive Offices
Office of Navajo and Hopi Indian Relocation (ONHIR)
Department of the Interior
Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA)
Elected Officials and Committees
President
Senator John McCain (R-AZ)
Congress
Senate Committee on Indian Affairs
House Committee on Indian Affairs
United Nations
Companies
Peabody Coal Company
Lehman Brothers
Organizations
Sovereign Dineh Nation
Activists
Marsha Monestersky
Rita Sebastian
Carol Snyder Halberstadt

Federal Government

Discussion Forum

Executive Offices

Office of Navajo and Hopi Indian Relocation (ONHIR)

Description

Sample FAX/Letter

Contacts

Christopher J. Bavasi, Executive Director
P.O. Box KK
201 E. Birch
Flagstaff, Arizona 86002
Tel: 520-779-2721
Fax: 520-774-1977

Department of the Interior

Description

Sample FAX/Letter

Contacts

Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA)

Description

Sample FAX/Letter

Contacts

Department of the Interior
Bureau of Indian Affairs
Office of Public Affairs
1849 C Street, NW
Washington, DC 20240-0001
Office: 202-208-3711
Fax: 202-501-1516
http://www.doi.gov/bureau-indian-affairs.html

Kevin Gover, Assistant Secretary--Indian Affairs
Tel: 202-208-7163
http://www.doi.gov/bia/as-ia.htm

Elected Officials and Committees

President

Description

Sample FAX/Letter

Contacts

William Jefferson Clinton

White House Address

The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20500
Phone: 202-456-1414 Switchboard
Phone: 202-456-1111 Comments
FAX: 202-456-2883
president@whitehouse.gov
http://www.whitehouse.gov

Arkansas Address

3501 Oakwood Road #4
Little Rock, AR 72202

Sentaor John McCain (R-AZ)

Description

As senator for Arizona, in which Black Mesa is located, McCain has significant clout within the
Senate in matters concerning his home state. Senators tend to defer to the position of another
senator on matters that are confined to the senator's home state. Furthermore, McCain is a
member of the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs, which is responsible for reviewing issues
concerning Indians. In the documentary Broken Rainbow, McCain indicated a lack of concern for
the people of Black Mesa. He also supported the 1996 Accomodation Agreement which is
designed to hasten the relocation. McCain has announced his candidacy for the 2000 presidential
elections and is therefore subject to national pressure and publicity.

Sample FAX/Letter

Letter to the members of the SCIA sent on February 19th, 1999.

Contacts

U.S. Senator John McCain
241 Russell Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510
Phone number (202)224-2235
Fax number (202)228-2862
http://www.senate.gov/~mccain
Jill Peters, in the Washington office, handles Black Mesa issues.

Congress

Description

The Congress has the greatest power over Indian affairs of any government body or office in the
United States. Our best hope is to pass a new law that voids the 1974 and 1996 laws and which
allows the people to return to their homes and to live freely and without harrasment. The law must
not involve the idiotic and racist system of trust holdings and leasing which has been a fixture of the
US government's system of depriving native people of their rights. Please contact your own
congressional representatives who are (at least in theory) directly accountable to you. You may
also contact other congressional representatives to let them know of your concerns and to build
support for the cause.

Sample FAX/Letter

Senate Committee on Indian Affairs (SCIA)

Description

Sample FAX/Letter

Letter to the members of the SCIA sent on February 19th, 1999.

Contacts

Senate Select Committee On Indian Affairs

House Committee on Indian Affairs (HCIA)

Description

Sample FAX/Letter

Contacts

United Nations

The US has apparently turned a deaf ear to the plight of Black Mesa. Efforts are underway to
place international pressure on the US to respect their rights.

Companies

Several companies are profiting at the expense of the people and land. Black Mesa contains large
coal deposits that are being stripmined by the Peabody Western Coal Company.

Discussion Forum

Peabody Coal Company

Peabody Coal Company owns Peabody Western Coal Company, which is the company that is
stripmining Black Mesa to produce coal for highly polluting power plants. Peabody Coal Company
was recently acquired by Lehman Brothers of New York (see next entry).

Description

Sample FAX/Letter

Contacts

Irl F. Engelhardt, CEO
Peabody Group

Lehman Brothers

Lehman Brothers recently acquired Peabody Group, which in turn owns Peabody Western Coal
Company.

Description

Sample FAX/Letter

Contacts

Additional worldwide addresses
World Headquarters
3 World Financial Center
New York, NY 10285
USA
http://www.lehman.com

Organizations

Sovereign Dineh Nation

Description

The independent nation declared by the Dineh of Black Mesa.

Contact

Sovereign Dineh Nation
P.O.Box 1968
Kaibeto, AZ 86053
dinetah29@aol.com

Activists

These are people and organizations who are actively trying to help. You may contact them with
specific questions and with offers of assistance.

Marsha Monestersky

Description

Marsha Monestersky is in Black Mesa and is directly involved in the campaign. She is also a
consultant to the Sovereign Dineh Nation and Cochair of the NGO Human Rights Caucus at the
UN Commission on Sustainable Development

Contact

Marsha Monestersky
Tel: 520-673-3461

Rita Sebastian

Description

Contact

Rita Sebastian

Carol Snyder Halberstadt

Description

Carol is the press contact for the SDN. She also sells weavings made by residents of Black Mesa,
of which all profits are donated to the SDN. (She is also my mother.)

Contact

Carol Snyder Halberstadt
carol@migrations.com
http://www.migrations.com

Activism | Black Mesa | Discussions