Standing beneath the sandstone cliffs of Bears Ears as Secretary of the Interior, I was guided by Tribal leaders through places their ancestors have known for generations. We stopped before ancient cliff dwellings and pictographs, tangible reminders that history is not confined to museums but lives vibrantly within the setting itself. Walking there, the weight of centuries makes a single lifetime feel small, highlighting the immense responsibility we hold toward those who will walk these paths after us. That same profound feeling sweeps over me every time I visit Chaco Canyon in New Mexico’s northwest corner. There, picturing ancestors placing each of the millions of stones with care and purpose offers a powerful connection to the past. Tragically, that setting is now at risk, jeopardizing the physical narrative of our shared human history.
These places reaffirm a fundamental truth: America’s public lands tell the story of who we all are. While some locations are remarkable for their beauty or the wildlife they sustain, Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monuments encompass all of these qualities. More importantly, they function as living cultural settings where Tribal Nations maintain enduring relationships with lands that have shaped their histories, traditions, and identities for millennia. The Trump administration’s decision to eliminate these monuments is heartbreaking. Their attempt to rewrite history and erase our national monuments transcends mere lines on a map; it strikes at the irreplaceable value these lands hold. This threat extends beyond Utah, raising critical questions about the future of other national monuments across the country, such as the Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks in southern New Mexico or Petroglyph National Monument outside of Albuquerque.
When we reinstated protections for Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante in 2021, the action was the result of many in-person meetings, consultation with Tribal Nations, and extensive feedback from the American public. This decision acknowledged that some places are so significant they demand thoughtful stewardship by caring and experienced people who understand their worth. Upon arriving at the Department of the Interior, I was acutely aware of the agency’s complicated history with Indigenous peoples. My grandparents were survivors of the assimilation policies of their day—taken away to boarding school and eventually relocated to a town in Arizona to work on the railroad. That personal history helped me make listening a true priority. For generations, Indigenous peoples watched decisions about our ancestral homelands made without us.
For the re-protection of Bears Ears, Tribal Nations helped chart a different path, one rooted in consultation, respect, and shared stewardship. This approach serves as an example of what our democracy can look like when we choose to listen instead of dictate. After Trump’s announcement, hundreds gathered in Utah to stand with Tribal Nations in defense of these monuments, sharing a simple belief that some places are too important not to protect. Public lands belong to every American. Traveling across my home state, people have shared stories of camping beneath dark skies, veterans finding solace in nature after service, and young people discovering a lifelong love of the outdoors. Scientists use these lands to unlock chapters of our Earth’s history, while communities continue traditions that cannot be separated from the land itself.
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Communities deserve every opportunity to be on our public lands and to have responsible, transparent conversations about what “multi-use purpose” really means. Not every acre should serve the same purpose, and not every setting should bear every burden. Stewardship requires us to think beyond the next election, quarterly report, or news cycle to consider what our children and grandchildren will inherit. Americans with very different political beliefs share a common conviction that there are some places which define us as a nation. They remind us that our story is larger than any one administration, lifetime, or even multiple generations. Our greatest legacy should not be what we lose, but what we preserve.
The decisions we make about Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante will echo for decades. They will shape whether future generations inherit settings that inspire wonder, reveal our shared history, and honor the cultures that have called them home since time immemorial. The Antiquities Act was established to grant the president the authority to establish national monuments, not to eliminate them or minimize their size to facilitate resource extraction. It was meant to protect our heritage, yet the Trump administration has used it as an opportunity to attack our public lands. Despite continued objection from millions of Americans, Donald Trump has prioritized stripping protections to benefit industry’s bottom line.
Bears Ears, Grand Staircase-Escalante, and Chaco Canyon are connected through the lives of my ancestors. Their stories are yet to be fully revealed as humans stand on the land traversed by North America’s earliest inhabitants. We cannot recreate these places once they are lost. These settings have existed for thousands of years because generations before us understood their obligation to the future. We must protect these national monuments so future generations inherit not just stories, but the emotions that surface in realizing they are part of that rich and beautiful setting.
