This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2016, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Rep. Jason Chaffetz's op-ed ("PLI gives tribes more of what they want in Bears Ears," Feb. 7) is profoundly misleading. His broadside critique of the National Park Service ("not friendly to tribes") is deceitful. The congressman puts more than a few quarters in the way-back machine to dredge up policies and issues from a time when the overall policy of the U.S. government towards Indian tribes was moving from "kill them all" to the more "humane" vision of destroying Indian culture by busting up tribal lands and making everyone speak English and get haircuts. Context here, as in all things, is key.
Beyond that, what Chaffetz does not acknowledge is that the potential Bears Ears National Monument as proposed does not envision a National Park Service unit but collaborative management of multiple parties that is inclusive, representative and respectful of values, traditions and cultures. The objective, as I understand it, is to move towards a place of healing.
David Nimkin
Salt Lake City