Hopi Tribe Sues Navajo Nation Over Access To Religious Sites
The Hopi Tribe of Arizona has filed a federal lawsuit against the Navajo Nation over access to sacred sites for religious practices. Navajo law enforcement has restricted access to Hopi shrines on Navajo land, prompting the dispute.
According to Hopi representatives, tribal members have traveled to certain sacred sites in northeastern Arizona for at least a thousand years to conduct religious ceremonies.
However, over the last few years, Navajo police have prevented Hopi religious practitioners from accessing those sites and claim the Hopis are trespassing.
"We've had an arrest of a Hopi religious leader, and also, essentially, a blockade at a different site, preventing Hopi religious leaders from carrying out their pilgrimages," said Hopi legal representative Tim Macdonald. "We think, the Navajo need to stop and should stop."
Macdonald says a previous, intergovernmental compact between the tribes allowed the Hopi to access sacred sites on Navajo land, and says the Navajo should honor that agreement.
The Navajo Nation declined to comment on the lawsuit.
