Virginia Cramer, virginia.cramer@sierraclub.org, 804-519-8449
***WATCH: Message to Secretary Zinke is Hard to Miss***
***Photos Online HERE***
WASHINGTON, DC -- The Department of the Interior building, home to newly-confirmed Sec. Ryan Zinke, has been lit, literally, with messages urging Sec. Zinke to defend the country’s protected public lands, particularly the Bears Ears National Monument in Utah. The sentiment clearly echoed that of the crowd gathered outside the Interior building yesterday chanting and holding signs in support of the monument and protections for America’s great outdoors.
Even before Sec. Zinke’s first day, a small faction in the U.S. Congress began urging the Administration to overturn protections of national monuments, such as the Bears Ears National Monument, which protects tribal artifacts and cultural heritage. Bears Ears was protected through the use of the Antiquities Act. Signed into law by President Theodore Roosevelt in 1906, the Antiquities Act has since been used by Republican and Democratic presidents to designate existing national public lands as national monuments to safeguard our nation’s historic, cultural, and natural sites for future generations.
The light projection brought the stunning vistas of the Bears Ears National Monument to the District, along with a call to “Honor Tribes, #StandWithBearsEars.” The messages also highlighted the cultural and natural wonders safeguarded by the national monument, as well as the outdoor recreation opportunities created.
“#WhatWouldTeddyDo?” asked one message, referencing Sec. Zinke’s self-described Theodore Roosevelt conservation style. Roosevelt is known for his commitment to conserving public lands for future generations to enjoy.
“The responsibility of defending our public lands for those who come after us now falls to Secretary Zinke. These are places that people care about deeply. He must set aside his ties to the fossil fuel industry, and instead continue our country’s longstanding tradition of protecting the parks, monuments and other public lands that are so much a part of the American experience,” said Sierra Club Executive Director Michael Brune.
The projection was sponsored by The Sierra Club in partnership with New York City’s The Illuminator. Video for the projection provided by Friends of Cedar Mesa.
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