Virginia Cramer, virginia.cramer@sierraclub.org, 804-519-8449
LOS ANGELES-- Sierra Club Ambassador Kiersey Clemons joined a three day Sierra Club Outing to Bears Ears National Monument in Utah to experience the extraordinary red-rock terrain and deep history of Tribal Nations tied to this area. The monument is at the center of the Trump administration's plans to roll back protections for iconic lands across the country.
Watch the just released video from Clemons’ trip here.
“I’ve never experienced anything like Bears Ears in my life. I walked on these lands that are sacred, healing and powerful. I met with the Tribal Nations whose connection to this place goes back a millennia. We cannot let the Trump Administration undo their century of work to protect these lands and their history,” said Sierra Club Ambassador Kiersey Clemons. “I stand with Bears Ears.”
Five tribes-- the Hopi, Ute Mountain Ute, Pueblo of Zuni, Ute Indian Tribe and the Navajo Nation, came together to call for the protection of the Bears Ears region. The monument holds more than 100,000 cultural and archaeological sites that have been threatened by rampant looting and grave robbing. Thirty tribes have expressed support for the monument, where many Native people continue to hunt, gather medicinal herbs, and conduct ceremonies.
Kiersey Clemons stars in Sony’s “Flatliners” in theaters now. Coming up, she stars as Iris West in DC Comics “FlashPoint” and will join the cast this season on Steve Carrell’s hit show “Angie Tribeca.” Kiersey is best known for her breakout roles in Amazon’s “Transparent” and “Dope,” produced by Pharrell Williams and Forest Whitaker, which premiered to critical acclaim at Sundance Film Festival in 2015.
Clemons joins more than 2.8 million people across the country who have voiced their strong support of preserving national public lands as national monuments. She is part of a growing movement to explore, enjoy and protect special places and the communities who depend on them. All in the face of numerous Trump administration attempts to scale back protections for parks and other public lands-- including budget cuts, shrinking boundaries, targeting new areas for drilling, mining and fracking, and weakening clean air, water and health safeguards that keep our public lands and communities clean and healthy.
For additional info, video files and high res photos contact Carolyn Zweifel at carolyn@pr.etc.com.
About the Sierra Club
The Sierra Club is America’s largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization, with more than 3 million members and supporters. In addition to helping people from all backgrounds explore nature and our outdoor heritage, the Sierra Club works to promote clean energy, safeguard the health of our communities, protect wildlife, and preserve our remaining wild places through grassroots activism, public education, lobbying, and legal action. For more information, visit www.sierraclub.org.