Biden: Nevada site sacred to tribes to be national monument

By KEN RITTER
Associated Press

LAS VEGAS (AP) — President Joe Biden says he intends to designate a broad rugged mountain area considered sacred by area Native Americans in southern Nevada as a new national monument. Biden told a gathering of tribal leaders in Washington on Wednesday that Spirit Mountain is central to the creation story of several Mojave Desert tribes. The mountain would be part of Avi Kwa Ame National Monument, a huge area south of Las Vegas stretching generally from Arizona and the Colorado River to California and the Mojave National Preserve. The designation isn’t final, but Biden’s announcement was hailed by tribal representatives, conservationists and members of Nevada’s congressional delegation including Democratic U.S. Rep. Dina Titus.