Image description: A landscape covered in trees, Bears Ears, Utah
Image credit: Bruce Rinehart via Wikimedia Commons

Preservation

When the National Park Service celebrated its 100th birthday in 2016, a lot of folks learned that the NPS was created in 1916 as a result of the Organic Act, which also includes the inspirational mission statement about conserving and protecting the natural and cultural resources for future generations. The creation of an agency to conserve and protect numerous sites that had been created, starting in 1872, was signed by President Woodrow Wilson, as war ravaged Europe.

Ten years earlier, in 1906, the US Congress passed the Antiquities Act, giving the President the power to set aside areas of cultural significance to protect them from looters. The previous few years had seen an exponential increase in the looting of indigenous sites, especially in the American West. The law gave the President the authority to create National Monuments and since the law was signed by Teddy Roosevelt in 1906. 158 National Monuments have been created.

Many National Monument designations have been strengthened by Congress into National Parks and other designations, a few have been changed by incoming Presidents and Congress has made laws to manage others. A case in point is the designation of land in Alaska by President Carter in the last few days of his presidency which set aside virtually all of Alaska’s public land as National Monuments. Congress modified the designation in that any changes be made only with permission of the people of Alaska.

A more recent case in point is the Bear Ears National Monument in Southern Utah, designated by President Obama on December 28, 2016. This area is sacred to a number of tribes. President Obama’s successor cut the land set aside 85% after requests from a number of Congressional representatives. In another reversal, President Biden reversed President Trump’s decision and restored all land back to President Obama’s original designation.

Twenty-five years ago, with the establishment of the Boston Harbor Islands, what was then a unique requirement was added to the Harbor Islands legislation. The newly established park area is required to consult with the local tribes on all aspects of the management of the park

This year, thanks to the leadership of our Secretary of the Interior, Deb Haaland, five tribes associated with Bear Ears ( Navajo Nation, Hopi Tribe, The Ute Mountain Ute Tribe, the Pueblo of Zuni and the Ute Indian Tribe) will not just be consulted; they will co-manage the new Bear Ears National Monument, encompassing 1.36 million acres.

Carlton Bowekaty, Lt Governor of the Pueblo of Zuni Tribe said that having the opportunity to manage the tribes’ ancestral homes is the best avenue for restorative justice.

“Today, instead of being removed from a landscape to make way for a public park, we are being invited back to out ancestral homelands to help repair them and plan for a resilient future”

That’s how the light gets in…..

References:

Nichole Chavez.  CNN.  5 Native American Tribes will work with federal officials to co-manage Bears Ears National Monument. June 22, 2022

The Antiquities Act: ( 16 U.S.C. 431-433)