Members of the Keweenaw Bay Indian Community of Michigan continue to camp out on public land in protest of a proposed nickel and copper mine.

The Stand for the Land group started the protest on April 27. They fear the mine will harm the Eagle Rock site and poison Lake Superior.

“We are out here celebrating our Anishinabe heritage at Eagle Rock. I wish that anyone who feels the need to come out here does," tribal member Levi Tadgerson, 23, told The Michigan Messenger. We need to show how much we love this place. Water is sacred to everyone.”

Since the protest started, members of Michigan tribes and other tribes have come to the site to show their support. The KBIC tribal council plans to hold a meeting there on Saturday.

Kennecott Eagle Minerals, a subsidiary of Rio Tinto, is leasing land from the state to develop the mine.

Get the Story:
Occupation of Eagle Rock grows, draws supporters (The Michigan Messenger 5/4)

Related Stories:
Keweenaw Bay activists camp out at planned mining site (4/28)
Opinion: Michigan mining endangers sacred Ojibwe lands (4/12)