2026年5月4日 美国东部时间上午7:35 / 美联社
南达科他州苏福尔斯讯——南达科他州、北达科他州和内布拉斯加州的9个美洲原住民部落正在起诉联邦政府，试图叫停在黑山一处神圣遗址附近进行的石墨勘探钻探项目。
自4月底得知钻探项目破土动工以来，一小批示威者一直在钻探现场和矿业公司总部进行抗议。
这些部落周四在南达科他州提起联邦诉讼，起诉美国林业局和美国农业部，指控这两家机构在批准皮斯拉（Pe’Sla）附近项目时违反了联邦法律。皮斯拉是黑山中部的一片草地，常年被用于部落仪式、祈祷和青年营活动。
该项目是郁郁葱葱、覆盖着松林的黑山地区部落与矿业利益之间最新的紧张点。这片区域占地超过120万英亩，从南达科他州西南部的大平原延伸至怀俄明州。
该区域每年接待数百万游客，拥有拉什莫尔山和野生动植物丰富的州立公园等景点。但更久以来，它对苏族部落而言一直是圣地——苏族称这片区域为“赫萨帕”（He Sapa），认为它是“万物之心”，根据诉讼文件中的描述。
19世纪70年代的淘金热改变了这片区域的部分地貌，该区域因此得到开发，原住民也被驱逐。近年来，受金价上涨推动，一批新的矿业从业者试图重返这片土地。
诉讼文件称，总部位于拉皮德城的皮特·林恩父子公司（Pete Lien & Sons）的项目将影响部落对皮斯拉的传统、文化和宗教用途，且林业局在批准该项目前并未与部落进行磋商。
根据诉讼文件，皮斯拉的部分土地已于2012年、2015年和2018年被苏族部落收购，部落与林业局之间达成协议，在该遗址周围的公共土地上设立了两英里的缓冲区。
由于皮斯拉未被列为受影响区域，且未进行环境评估，该批准违反了《国家历史保护法》和《国家环境政策法》，诉讼指控道。
提供石灰石、沙子和砾石等材料的皮特·林恩父子公司周四和周日未回复置评请求的电子邮件和语音留言。
对部落而言的“历史性”时刻
奥格拉拉苏族部落主席弗兰克·斯塔·卡姆斯·奥特（Frank Star Comes Out）在一份声明中表示，此次诉讼是9个部落“团结的历史性展现”。这些部落是各自独立、拥有联邦认可身份的族群，拥有共同的文化和语言根源，但各自拥有政府和领地。
“作为拉科塔人，我们来到这些地方祈祷、举行仪式已有2000多年历史，”本土倡导组织“NDN集体”主席、罗斯巴德苏族部落成员维齐潘·加里奥特（Wizipan Garriott）说道，“我们在此延续着祖先无数代人的传统。保护这些圣地留给后代至关重要。”
该项目于2月份获得林业局许可，未进行环境评估，因为林业局称其符合分类排除的要求，例如项目时长不足一年，不会对环境和文化遗址造成影响。
但部落反对者认为这些要求并未得到满足，并表示钻探项目往往是未来矿山建设的第一步。
除了部落提起的诉讼，NDN集体和其他环保组织还申请了临时限制令和初步禁令，以叫停该项目。
根据NDN集体的说法，部分钻探平台位于遗址周边的缓冲区内。该项目要求该公司钻最多18个深度约1000英尺的孔以采集样本。
周四，反对者举着“保护皮斯拉”和“神圣土地而非采矿领地”的标牌在两处钻探平台附近示威，阻断通道。NDN集体表示，林业局告知他们当日剩余时间钻探将暂停，承包商已被遣送回家。
林业局在一份声明中表示，被问及该项目时不予置评。
“林业局不会对案件细节或正在进行的法律程序中的相关问题发表评论，”声明称。
目前尚不清楚钻探何时开始，但NDN集体表示，他们上周注意到钻探平台已投入使用。该组织表示，必要时将继续开展抗议行动以保护皮斯拉。
“作为拉科塔人，我们会祈祷到底，”加里奥特说道。
9 tribes sue to stop exploratory drilling in Black Hills near sacred ceremonial site
May 4, 2026 7:35 AM EDT / AP
Sioux Falls, S.D.— Nine Native American tribes in South Dakota, North Dakota and Nebraska are suing the federal government in a bid to stop exploratory drilling for graphite near a sacred site in the Black Hills.
A small group of demonstrators has been protesting at the drilling location and at the mining company’s headquarters since they learned ground was broken on the drilling project in late April.
Masked demonstrators sit atop drilling equipment on April 30, 2026, in Pennington County, S.D., with a banner reading Sacred ground not mining bound. Angel White Eyes / AP
The tribes filed their federal lawsuit Thursday in South Dakota against the U.S. Forest Service and U.S. Department of Agriculture, alleging that the agencies violated federal law by greenlighting a project near a site called Pe’Sla, a meadow in the central Black Hills used for tribal ceremonies, prayer and youth camps year-round.
The project is the latest point of tension between tribes and mining interests in the lush pine-covered Black Hills, which encompass over 1.2 million acres, rising from the Great Plains in southwest South Dakota and extending into Wyoming.
The region is a yearly destination for millions of tourists and boasts such attractions as Mount Rushmore and wildlife-filled state parks. Yet for even longer, it has been sacred to Sioux tribes who call the area He Sapa and consider it “the heart of everything that is,” according to the complaint.
Some of the landscape has already been altered by the gold rush of the 1870s that developed the region and displaced Native Americans. And in recent years, a new crop of miners driven by rising gold prices have sought to return to the landscape.
The complaint said the project by Rapid City-based mining company Pete Lien & Sons would impact the use of Pe’Sla for traditional, cultural and religious purposes by the tribes, and that the Forest Service didn’t consult with the tribes before approving the project.
Parts of Pe’Sla are owned by Sioux tribes after they bought the land in 2012, 2015 and 2018, and an agreement between the tribes and the Forest Service established a two-mile buffer zone on public lands around the site, according to the complaint.
Because Pe’Sla wasn’t included as an affected area and no environmental review was conducted, the approval violates the National Historic Preservation Act and National Environmental Policy Act, the lawsuit alleges.
Pete Lien & Sons, which supplies materials like limestone, sand and gravel, didn’t return email requests or voicemails for comment Thursday and Sunday.
A masked demonstrator stands with their fist in the air, wearing a Land Back beanie in front of signs reading Protect Pe’Sla Now on April 30, 2026, in Pennington County, S.D. Angel White Eyes / AP
“Historic” moment for the tribes
Frank Star Comes Out, president of the Oglala Sioux Tribe, said in a statement that the lawsuit is “a historic demonstration of unity” among the nine tribes. The tribes are separate, distinct federally recognized tribes sharing cultural and linguistic roots, but each with its own government and land base.
“We as Lakota people have been coming and praying and holding ceremony at these places for over 2,000 years,” said Wizipan Garriott, president of Indigenous advocacy group NDN Collective and a member of the Rosebud Sioux Tribe. “And so us being here is a continuation of countless generations before us. And it’s important that these sacred places be protected for future generations to come.”
The project was granted a permit from the Forest Service in February without conducting an environmental review because the agency said it met the requirements for a categorical exclusion, like having a duration of less than a year and not posing impacts to environmental and cultural sites.
But tribal opponents disagree that those requirements were met and said drilling projects are often a first step leading to future mines.
Besides the lawsuit from the tribes, NDN Collective and other environmental groups filed a request for a temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction to halt the project.
Some of the drilling pads are in the buffer zone around the site, according to NDN Collective. The project calls for the company to drill up to 18 holes down some 1,000 feet into the Earth to collect samples.
On Thursday, opponents demonstrated with signs reading “Protect Pe’Sla” and “Sacred ground not mining bound” near two drilling pads to block access. NDN Collective said the Forest Service told them drilling was paused for the rest of the day and the contractors were sent home.
The Forest Service said in a statement that it had no comment on the project when asked for a response.
“The Forest Service does not comment on the specifics of the case or on issues that are part of ongoing legal proceedings,” the statement said.
It’s unclear when drilling began, but NDN Collective said it noticed drilling pads in operation last week. The group said protest actions will continue as needed to protect Pe’Sla.
“As Lakota, we pray as long as we need to,” Garriott said.