A historic initiative to empower tribal nations in the stewardship of their ancestral lands in southern Utah faced an abrupt and devastating reversal on Monday, as President Donald Trump announced sweeping reductions to Bears Ears National Monument and Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument. The move, which slashed Bears Ears by a staggering 91% and Grand Staircase-Escalante by 90%, effectively eliminated the Bears Ears Commission, a groundbreaking body established in 2016 to ensure direct tribal involvement in the management of 1.35 million acres of culturally and ecologically vital territory. This dramatic proclamation, paving the way for expanded resource extraction, has ignited fierce condemnation from Indigenous leaders, environmental groups, and legal scholars, signaling a renewed battle over public lands and tribal sovereignty.

The Bears Ears Commission, a collaborative entity comprising representatives from the Hopi Tribe, Navajo Nation, Ute Indian Tribe, Ute Mountain Ute Tribe, and Zuni Tribe, alongside federal agencies, was a beacon of co-management, designed to weave Indigenous knowledge and traditional practices into the protective framework of the monument. Its dissolution represents more than a mere administrative change; it is perceived as an attempt to erase years of dedicated tribal leadership and the hard-won relationships forged between sovereign tribal nations and their federal partners. Davina Smith-Idjesa, co-chair for the Bears Ears Inter-Tribal Coalition and its Navajo Nation representative, articulated the profound grief and frustration felt by Indigenous communities, stating, "I am angry. I am hurt, and I am tired of standing here having to explain again why Bears Ears matters to me."

These combined cuts, encompassing approximately 3 million acres of federal lands, surpass the scale of reductions made during President Trump’s first administration, which were subsequently reversed under President Joe Biden. The current proclamation, anticipated since President Trump’s return to office last year, culminates a persistent campaign by the state of Utah to diminish the monuments and curtail Indigenous oversight. "We have been here before, but this cuts even deeper," Smith-Idjesa emphasized, highlighting the cyclical nature of these conflicts and the escalating threat to tribal self-determination.

Under the previous Trump administration, the Department of the Interior had reportedly pledged consultation with the Bears Ears Commission before considering any alterations to the monument’s boundaries. However, the Bears Ears Inter-Tribal Coalition confirmed that this promised consultation never materialized, underscoring a perceived breach of trust and a disregard for established protocols. The unilateral nature of Monday’s decision has exacerbated concerns about the federal government’s commitment to its trust responsibilities to tribal nations and its willingness to engage in meaningful dialogue.

The language employed in the presidential order has drawn particular criticism for its dismissive portrayal of the monuments’ intrinsic value. Monte Mills, director of the Native American Law Center at the University of Washington, observed that the reduction went beyond simply undoing a monument; it sought to redefine and diminish the significance of a place held sacred by tribes and valued by many others. The proclamation described objects within the monument as "not of particular historic or scientific interest" and the landscape as merely "generic features" unworthy of protection, effectively attempting to "rewrite and trying to erase the real history and meaning and value of this place." Mills further contextualized this action as part of "a broader project of white nationalism on the part of this administration," aligning it with other efforts, such as the removal of signs from national parks that acknowledge Indigenous histories or slavery.

Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, established by President Bill Clinton in 1996, faces similar existential challenges. The Inter-Tribal Coalition, which formed last year to defend this monument and advocate for tribal perspectives, has been instrumental in ensuring Indigenous voices are heard in land management decisions. Both monuments had finalized their comprehensive resource management plans in 2025, following extensive public and tribal consultations aimed at integrating traditional ecological knowledge and Indigenous cultural practices. Bears Ears, in particular, had emerged as an exemplary model for Indigenous leadership in land stewardship, demonstrating how collaborative management could lead to more holistic and culturally sensitive conservation outcomes.

The recurrent fluctuations in monument boundaries starkly illustrate the inherent vulnerability of tribal co-management initiatives to political shifts and influence. While Bears Ears has long been a focal point of contention, the current administration’s actions are indicative of broader changes affecting all facets of public lands management. Mills warned that these developments signify "the fundamental destruction of public-lands management as we know it," extending to critical areas such as grazing regulations, oil and gas leasing rules, and the Endangered Species Act. He concluded that the administration’s reshaping of the federal government is now visibly playing out across the vast public landscape.

Mills characterized the Bears Ears rollback as the federal government "fully stepping back from its obligations," largely "at the behest of Utah politicians." Indeed, Utah state officials have maintained a contentious relationship with the national monuments within their borders. In blistering public comments submitted in 2024 regarding a draft of the Bears Ears resource management plan, the state accused federal agencies under the Biden administration of a "focus on eliminating the State’s rights from this land." They claimed the agencies exhibited "wholesale deference" to the Bears Ears Commission and sought to "create a new ‘Indian Country’" through the national monument. Furthermore, Utah urged agencies to be "more inclusive of living, non-Indigenous people," asserting that the draft plan afforded "less respect, dignity and protections to their heritage when compared to the heritage of the area’s Indigenous people."

Utah, which notably sued over President Biden’s restoration of the monuments in 2022, also criticized the plan for promoting "a state of non-use." These sentiments were echoed by President Trump during Monday’s proclamation signing ceremony, where he falsely claimed, "You can’t go hunting. You can’t go fishing. You can’t do anything. You can virtually not even walk on it" – activities that are, in fact, permitted within the monument’s boundaries. Such rhetoric fuels a narrative that pits conservation against public access and traditional land uses, misrepresenting the realities of monument management.

The decision to shrink the monuments has been met with a unified chorus of opposition from tribal leaders, members of Congress, conservationists, recreational enthusiasts, and local communities. On Tuesday, the Native American Rights Fund (NARF), which has historically represented three of the tribes comprising the Bears Ears Commission, swiftly announced its intention to challenge the legality of the president’s actions. NARF Deputy Director Matthew Campbell affirmed, "We will pursue every available legal course of action to stop these illegal attacks on Native homelands, culture, and people," asserting that the president lacks the statutory authority to unilaterally shrink national monuments. This legal challenge is expected to reignite a crucial constitutional debate over the scope of presidential power under the Antiquities Act of 1906, which allows presidents to designate national monuments but is ambiguous regarding their authority to reduce or abolish them.

Hillary Hoffmann, a professor of law at the University of Wyoming and former co-director of the Bears Ears Inter-Tribal Coalition, emphasized that the decade-long cycle of boundary changes and reversals for these monuments "should be a signal to the judiciary that resolution is needed on these legal questions." She suggested that congressional action could provide a permanent solution, safeguarding Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante and enshrining tribal co-management. Despite the setback, Hoffmann expressed optimism, stating, "I don’t think that this strikes any kind of death knell for collaborative management or co-stewardship."

Long before the Bears Ears Commission was formally established, the five tribal nations united to form the Bears Ears Inter-Tribal Coalition, advocating passionately for the land that eventually became the monument. Their enduring commitment to these sacred ancestral territories remains unshaken. As Smith-Idjesa powerfully articulated, "Our connection to Bears Ears did not begin with a presidential proclamation, and it will not end with one. You can abolish a commission, you can redraw a boundary, but you cannot erase our prayers from this land. You cannot erase the footprints of our ancestors from this land. You cannot erase us. We are still here." This unwavering declaration underscores the profound spiritual and cultural ties that transcend political decrees, ensuring that the fight for Bears Ears and Indigenous land rights will continue with resolute determination.