Bears Ears in the News: "Fierce" New Leadership Gives Advocates New Hope
Mudhills near Clay Hills, Utah. (Stephen Strom, 2016)
After a lengthy hiatus, we're back with a new edition of Bears Ears in the News. It's been four years since former President Barack Obama established Bears Ears National Monument, and a new chapter in the ongoing saga is about to begin.
Will Biden Restore Bears Ears?
With less than two weeks until President-elect Joe Biden's inauguration, proponents of restoring Bears Ears National Monument are urging the Biden administration to do so, and quickly. In a welcome turn of events for advocates who have fought the current administration in the courts and elsewhere over what they view as near-constant assaults on public lands, they now appear to have friends in high places.
As Zak Podmore of the Salt Lake Tribune reported shortly after Biden's victory, "On the campaign trail, Biden promised to take “immediate steps to reverse the Trump administration’s assaults on America’s natural treasures,” including Trump's move to rescind Bears Ears in December 2017. (Multiple lawsuits challenging Trump's executive order are ongoing.)
A “Fierce” Indigenous Leader for Interior Department
The appointment of Rep. Deb Haaland (D-NM) to lead the Interior Department - who, if confirmed by the Senate, would become the first Native American to serve as a Cabinet secretary - drew widespread praise from conservationists and Indigenous leaders alike. Her appointment would seem to bode well for Bears Ears.
Significantly, Haaland in 2019 reintroduced a bill to not merely restore Bears Ears but to expand it from 1.35 million acres to the original 1.9 million acres proposed by the Bears Ears Inter-Tribal Coalition in their 2015 proposal to the Obama administration. By doing so, she sent a clear message that she is and will continue to be a strong advocate for Native-led efforts to protect and steward public lands.
Haaland, who is from the Pueblos of Laguna and Jemez, has indicated she will use her position of power to be a strong advocate for Indian Country.
"A voice like mine has never been a Cabinet secretary or at the head of the Department of Interior," Haaland tweeted shortly after her appointment was announced on December 17, 2020. "Growing up in my mother’s Pueblo household made me fierce. I’ll be fierce for all of us, our planet, and all of our protected land. I am honored and ready to serve."
“A Monumental Moment for Indian Country”
In its latest newsletter, the Bears Ears Inter-Tribal Coalition underscored the significance of Haaland's appointment, particularly against the backdrop of the U.S. government's many efforts to disenfranchise, displace, and degrade Native Americans.
"Historically, the [Interior Department] has maintained a tumultuous and painful relationship with Native peoples carrying out such policies as those that removed Native people from their ancestral homelands, while opening protected areas to mining and drilling," the Coalition wrote. "As such, uplifting an Indigenous Pueblo woman to lead in this role is a monumental moment for Indian Country."
What’s Next?
The next few months will prove eventful and likely consequential for Bears Ears advocates, and for those in San Juan County, Utah, who live next door to the monument. We'll be following the latest developments as they unfold. Stay tuned.