Read the information below to understand more about the context behind Bears Ears National Monument.

Archeologists have found evidence that people were living in what is today southeastern Utah by 13,000 years ago. Through thousands of years of prehistory, people established campsites, homesites, and villages along rivers and in resource-rich mountains and valleys. They engaged in hunting, farming, and trading. They built homes and storage areas, made baskets and pottery, and created art on the rock walls of canyons. Utah was a cooler and wetter place thousands of years ago, unlike the deserts that can be seen today in southeastern Utah. Then hundreds of years ago the climate began to become warmer and dryer. Communities adapted to the changing climate but eventually a drought became so severe that the people had to leave their homes. Physical evidence and oral histories both suggest that the Pueblo nations of modern New Mexico are the descendants of these migrants. For this reason, the ancient inhabitants of southern Utah are often referred to as the Ancestral Pueblo.

The Ancestral Pueblo people left behind a rich archeological record that included, homes, pottery, baskets, sandals, arrowheads, and scores of other artifacts. In modern times these artifacts have become of interest to many groups. Archeologists use them to study prehistoric people. Modern Native American groups engage in religious rituals in sacred places near ancestral homes. Unfortunately, private collectors have illegally taken artifacts that they keep in private collections or sell for profit. Careless visitors sometimes damage artifacts accidentally or intentionally. The protection of artifacts and ancient homesites is difficult in an area as vast and with such a small current population as southeastern Utah.

In July of 2015, a group of leaders from several Indigenous nations formed the Bears Ears Inter-Tribal Coalition and proposed the creation of a national monument to protect the natural and archeological treasures of a large section of southeastern Utah. They named the area after two large buttes that resemble Bears Ears. Their proposal invited the federal government to work with local Indigenous nations to manage and protect the land and its natural and archeological resources. Soon, environmental groups expressed their support for the proposal. But not everyone liked the idea. Many people who lived near the proposed national monument worried that the designation might prevent them from making a living. Ranchers were worried that the area where they kept their cattle might be closed to grazing. People who worked in the oil industry were concerned that oil wells on the land might be closed. Others worried that recreational activities, like hunting and four-wheeling, might be banned from the national monument. The local community near the proposed monument became very divided, with most of the White residents of the nearby towns of Blanding, Bluff, and Monticello opposing the monument and most of the Native Americans who lived in the region supporting it.

On December 28, 2016, President Barack Obama applied the Antiquities Act to formally create the Bears Ears National Monument. The Antiquities Act gave the president the authority to create such designations in order to protect important natural places. Bears Ears included over 1.3 million acres with over 100,000 archeological sites (see Map 1).

Photo by Bureau of Land Management (BLM) map of Bears Ears National Monument, Utah, United States - the original boundaries as defined in December 2016. Image found on Wikicommons

Map 1: Bears Ears National Monument as created by Barack Obama in 2016. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) map of Bears Ears National Monument, Utah, United States - the original boundaries as defined in December 2016. Image found on Wikicommons.

But opposition to the monument did not end with the formal creation of Bears Ears. Local residents of San Juan County, united with representatives of the State of Utah and convinced newly elected Donald Trump to drastically reduce the size of the monument, which he did in 2017. Trump claimed that Obama misapplied the Antiquities Act, which he said limited the president to designating the smallest area necessary to protect the objects at risk. With Trump’s order, the area of Bears Ears National Monument was reduced from 1.3 million acres to just over .2 million acres and included only the Indian Creek and the Shash Jáa regions. (See Map 2).

Photo by Map showing the original boundaries of Bears Ears National Monument and the boundaries as reduced by President Trump. Image found on Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance webpage.

Map 2: Map showing the original boundaries of Bears Ears National Monument and the boundaries as reduced by President Trump. Image found on Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance webpage.

On October 17, 2021, newly elected president Joe Biden restored the original 1.3-million-acre Bears Ears National Monument that Barack Obama had created. In a lengthy proclamation he described the scenic and historic importance of the region. Today the Bureau of Land Management together with the National Forest Service and several Native American Nations manage the region. But with Biden’s proclamation, opposition to the monument has not disappeared.

Written by Jeffery D. Nokes, History Professor, Brigham Young University

Use these articles, webpages and videos to better understand the details surrounding Bears Ears National Monument and to answer the central questions.

7th Grade:

UT Standard 4.2: Students will make an evidence-based argument regarding the appropriate roles of local, state, and federal governments in resolving a current and/or historical issue. (civics)

11th Grade:

U.S. II Standard 8.2: Students will apply historical perspective and historical thinking skills to propose a viable solution to a pressing economic, environmental, or social issue, such as failing social security, economic inequalities, the national debt, oil dependence, water shortages, global climate change, pandemics, pollution, global terrorism, poverty, and immigration.

Guidance for Teachers:

Objectives

1. Students will use sourcing, corroboration, and contextualization to analyze several sides of a complex issue.
2. Students will practice gathering information from varying perspectives to determine the best possible course of action.
3. Students will use information gathered to discuss a course of action and ultimately reach a consensus.

Materials

1. Student Graphic Organizer: this worksheet was designed to help students to keep a record as they analyze the documents, supporting students use of evidence to make a claim.
2. Document Set: A collection of five different articles, webpages and videos found on the archive page related to the conflict surrounding Bears Ears National Monument that will help the students reach a consensus.
3. Background Information: Some basic information that introduces the students to the background needed to work effectively with the webpages and to understand the context of Bears Ears National Monument, including maps. Teachers might use this to create a PowerPoint presentation or students could read this list to prepare for the activity.

Preparation

• Review the materials to build background knowledge on Bears Ears National Monument.
• Create a PowerPoint presentation on that material or prepare reading materials for students.
• Make a classroom set of the Document Packet or provide students links to the webpages.
• Make copies of one or both of the Student Graphic Organizers.
• Consider appropriate groups of students that would allow those with greater skills in reading and historical thinking to help those with weaker skills.

Procedures

1. Provide students with background knowledge on the issues and conflict surrounding Bears Ears National Monument. This can be done through a brief lecture with PowerPoint slides or a by reading the background information. It is important that the sources or instruction to not communicate opinions that would sway students in favor of one conclusion or another.
2. Explain to students the instructions for completing the Student Graphic Organizer. These instructions are found in the paragraph directly above the graphic organizer. You might model your thought processes as you analyze the first source, showing them how to complete the graphic organizer as you do.
3. To aid in completing the graphic organizer(s), you might provide a model or project a version of the worksheet that is finished.
4. Continue exploring the materials, pausing to analyze them and talk about what you would record on your graphic organizer as you go. (You might model this using PowerPoint slides by projecting one of the graphic organizers as you have taken notes on it).
5. Depending on the students’ reaction to the source and their understanding of the process of historical analysis, you can model the analysis of the second document as you did the first one. Or you might have students work with a partner to analyze the second document then regroup as a class and discuss what they came up with. You might display the next column of the graphic organizer associated with Document 2 and see whether the students came up with the same ideas you did.
6. Once you are confident the students understand the process you can give them time to work in teams on the remaining sources, circulating as they work to give support as needed. Give students time to answer the questions at the bottom of their graphic organizers.
7. After all the sources have been analyzed, bring the entire class back together for a discussion on the policies, determining which they are able to compromise on and about which their opinions differ. Ask the students questions and allow them to discuss and respectfully critique others’ responses.

Assessment

1. Use the pie chart on the graphic organizer to assess students’ understanding the value of including the perspectives of different stakeholders
2. Use students’ answers to the questions on their graphic organizer to assess students’ ability to gather evidence from the sources to support a claim.
3. During the discussion assess the students’ ability to engage in a conversation regarding willingness to compromise or determination to maintain their stance.