Native American tribes are seeking to weigh in on the legal battle over President Joe Biden’s designation of a sprawling national monument that surrounds the Grand Canyon National Park.
The Havasupai Tribe, Hopi Tribe and the Navajo Nation filed motions on Wednesday seeking to intervene in two cases in the U.S. District Court for the District of Arizona.
The lawsuits challenge Biden’s establishment of the Baaj Nwaavjo I’tah Kukveni — Ancestral Footprints of the Grand Canyon National Monument in northern Arizona last year.
“We consider this landscape not just beautiful, but sacred,” Hopi Tribe Vice Chair Craig Andrews said in a statement. “Our Tribal Nation has put a lot of work into protecting this gift from the Creator, and we will continue to do everything that we can to protect this area that we call home.”
