I believe that looking deeper into the charges levied in the "People of Red Mountain Statement of Opposition to Thacker Pass Mine" is an obvious thing to do.  That deeper look is what I referred to in my post when I noted that things aren't always as they seem to be on initial review.  Thanks for your comments, Coeruleus.  I believe that investigating the statements and views of the population at Fort McDermitt themselves will help separate truth from fiction in this area.  One question of note should be:  Who exactly is represented by the views expressed in the "People of Red Mountain Statement of Opposition to Thacker Pass Mine"?  Is this a majority opinion or more of a minority expression of only some members of the tribe?

I did find some reports that help in a small way of digging deeper, but I would like to know more about the basis of the local opposition.  I would particularly like to know more about the local support.  I did dig a bit on that story of the tribe withdrawing its support for Thacker Pass. Below are some links in that regard:

Nevada lithium mine kicks off a new era of Western extraction (The next mining boom?) — High Country News – Know the West (hcn.org)

Fort McDermitt Paiute and Shoshone tribal members protest Thacker Pass lithium mine | Sierra Nevada Ally

The question of how the initial approval was obtained from the Fort McDermitt Paiute Trive and whether or not that process was "fair" has been raised by the opposition.  One side of the story is reported as:

" According to Hinkey, many of the Fort McDermitt tribal members did not know about the mine until it was already approved, even though the BLM is required to inform and consult with nearby tribes before moving forward with a project.

“A letter has to be sent to the tribal council to let them know about the proposal,” said John Hadder, executive director of Great Basin Resource Watch, an environmental justice organization based in Nevada. “If they don’t respond, it is taken as a sign to go ahead with operations.” 

According to Hinkey, the BLM notified Fort McDermitt about the proposal in the summer of 2020 when the Tribal Council offices were closed and the reservation was dealing with surging Covid-19 cases. No further outreach was made before the draft EIS was released to the public. 

“The tribe didn’t get the opportunity to comment during the EIS’s commentary period,” said Billy Bell, a Fort McDermitt tribal Council member. 

Throughout 2020, the community meetings organized by Lithium Nevada and the BLM were conducted virtually due to the coronavirus pandemic. Many people living at Fort McDermitt don’t have internet access, which means that attending these community meetings or submitting online comments about the draft EIS was impossible. "

______________________________________________________________________

The link to that side of the story is:   Lithium Mining Proposal in Northern Nevada Threatens Paiute and Shoshone Land | Sovereignty (nativenewsonline.net)

Note that this link is from "Native News Online.net" and not from the DGR, so I think it gives some credence to the thinking of those native americans closest to Thacker Pass.  Obviously the story is more complex than this, so more information would be an advantage, but it is a starting place.  It does suggest that from the tribes viewpoint possibly the approval process regarding the tribe was not completely all above board.  At least that is the clear suggestion and the one that Nevada Lithium has to deal with.  Perception is sometimes more important than reality and this may be an example of that difference.

The whole name of the tribe is: 

Fort McDermitt Paiute and Shoshone Tribes of the Fort McDermitt Indian Reservation, Nevada and Oregon

Maxine Redstar is, in fact, the tribal Chairman: Fort McDermitt | Indian Affairs (bia.gov)

The original agreement between BLM, the tribe and LAC is found in the following link and may be of value in further research of the relationship of the tribe to Nevada lithium and the Thacker Pass Project:

BLM_-_WN_Lithium_Nevada_Thacker_Pass_Project_MOA.pdf (nv.gov)

The Reno News and Review had a piece about this issue back on 26 April that gives some additional background info:

The lithium paradox • Reno News & Review (newsreview.com)

At any rate, the actual resistance coming from the native americans at Fort McDermitt is a story that is not as simple as the DGR would like its followers to believe and is not something that may be as simple as the PR department at LAC would like us to believe.  Somewhere in between is the truth.  More information is always a plus, so I hope those on this Hub will continue to dig into this issue and share with the rest of us what they find.   JMO   Okiedo