Overview
- The tribe closed sections of its reservation and posted No Trespassing signs this weekend to bar non-members tied to border wall work and to deter contractors from entering without permission.
- The Tohono O'odham Nation has sued the Department of Homeland Security and is asking U.S. District Judge Richard Leon for a preliminary injunction to stop any takings of tribal land or water for the wall.
- Tribal leaders and their lawyers argue only Congress can diminish reservation boundaries and say the statute authorizing construction did not explicitly permit taking Nation land.
- Tribal police have been put on alert and warned they may remove, cite or arrest workers who illegally enter reservation land while urging the public not to confront crews and to report suspicious activity.
- On-the-ground resistance continues with tree-sitters protecting cottonwoods in Lochiel and conservation groups releasing video of bulldozing in Big Bend National Park, raising concerns about harm to sacred sites, wildlife and local communities.