THE WOMEN OF BEARS EARS
The Women of Bears Ears Speak: ‘The Mountains Are Reaching Out to Us’
‘We are rooted to Mother Earth through her body like the plants are rooted to the soil.’
April 23, 2021
Read the full New York Times op-ed here
“We are among the Women of Bears Ears — Indigenous women who support our families and communities in the protections of ancestral lands. We come from Diné, Nuche, Pueblo and all allied Native Nations. From these southwestern lands, twin buttes rise known as Bears Ears. We have been birthed into these lands. The umbilical cords of our ancestors are buried here. Our genealogies are intertwined.
We are rooted to the embodiment of Earth.
This past week, the new Interior secretary, Deb Haaland of the Laguna Pueblo, came to Bears Ears National Monument to listen to the voices of those who live in the shadow of Bears Ears, Native and nonnative alike.
Bears Ears is reaching out to us.
We, the Women of Bears Ears are reaching out to you.”
MISSION
Women of Bears Ears seeks to restore Indigenous women's matrilineal roles as decision-makers, culture bearers, and nurturers of our shared ancestral lands, and of future generations.
WHO WE ARE
We are among the Women of Bears Ears — Indigenous women who support our families and communities in the protections of ancestral lands.
Founding members include four generations of women: Cecilia Arnoux, Mary R. Benally, Tara Benally, Meredith Benally, Doreen Bird, Prestene Garnenez, Evangeline Gray, Honor Keeler, Pamela King, Evelyn Nelson, Loretta Posey, Frances Sheppard, Davina Smith, Denyce White, Cynthia Wilson, Elouise Wilson, Ida Yellowman, Angelina Valencia, Ahjani Yepa and the Women of Bears Ears who must remain anonymous for their protection.
Facilitators and Honorary Advisors include: Regina Lopez-Whiteskunk, Judith LeBlanc, Faith Spotted Eagle, Terry Tempest Williams, Cora Neumann and Rachael Cassells.
OUR WORK
We, the Women of Bears Ears, call for the rematriation of the Earth, and invite you to support and join us in nurturing the cycle of life and in restoring our relationships with the land and our nonhuman relatives.
Since 2019, we have been gathering to share our stories, connect, heal and organize. Participants span four generations of women. Our programming guides women through healing and connection, histories and oral stories, and Indigenous and matriarchal wisdom, while also grounding us in place in our Ancestral homelands. Our work connects Indigenous women with each other.
In order to heal, build alliances, and inspire action, we seek to: connect leaders and allies focused on protecting sacred and Indigenous homelands; revitalize Indigenous knowledge; and address climate change and racial injustice.
BEARS EARS
The Women of Bears Ears have been here since time immemorial. We advocate for the full protection of our Indigenous homelands for future generations. We support immediate action by President Biden to designate the 1.9 million acre Bears Ears National Monument and to enter into Indigenous consent-based management on Indigenous homelands.
Bears Ears is a movement among Indigenous Peoples to address racial and environmental injustice, end the suppression of Indigenous voices and rights in the care and management of our homelands, and ensure that Indigenous Peoples’ and Native Nations are the decision-makers of our own futures.
The Bears Ears region is the home of the Women of Bears Ears.
President Barack Obama designated by Presidential Proclamation the 1.35 million-acre Bears Ears National Monument on December 28, 2016, after Indigenous Peoples and Native Nations submitted a proposal for the full protection of the 1.9 million acre Bears Ears region. This moment was unprecedented, as it stepped toward the acknowledgement that Indigenous Peoples and Native Nations have the right to (co-)manage their homelands. However, in December of 2017, President Trump attempted to reduce the Bears Ears National Monument by 85% into two smaller units and illegally expedited a monument management plan so that Indigenous Peoples’ and Native Nations’ input were excluded, despite the requirements of federal law.
On January 20, 2021, President Biden issued an Executive Order calling for a boundary review and report on the Bears Ears National Monument. Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland visited the Bears Ears National Monument in April of 2021 to meet with Native Nations, Indigenous Peoples, and local and state politicians on behalf of the Biden Administration.
The Women of Bears Ears responded with an Op-Ed in the New York Times. We are hopeful that the Biden Administration restores the 1.9 million-acre Bears Ears region to the management of Native Nations and Indigenous Peoples as a National Monument.
