By Audrey Peterman
Col. Charles Young, Omega Psi Phi and the Buffalo Solidiers, saved the giant sequoias in Sequoia National Park. His home is also in a park.
South Florida in the 1990s was where my husband Frank and I cut our teeth on environmental work, drawing attention to the beautiful National Parks and Forests around the country, the history they contain for every ethnic group, and encouraging people to visit. We consistently gave people the information so that they could advocate for the continued protection of these natural treasures through laws and funding, in a world becoming increasingly oblivious of nature.
Thirty years later we have reached THE EXACT OPPOSITE POINT, where our own government is handing over these lands to extractive industries to mine for coal and cut down old growth forests. The Secretary of the Department of Interior, a former official in the oil and gas industry, is said to have chortled,
“We need to mine, baby! Mine!” as he gave the order yesterday.
The administration is also trying to revive the coal industry with $652 million in taxpayer subsidies to coal mines that should be closing, essentially “propping up a dead industry with our tax dollars, our public lands, and our lives as collateral,” says Jim Pattiz at “More than just parks” on Substack.
This “administration” is like the Joker in a Batman movie, except this is neither a movie nor a joke. Once our public lands system is breached in this way, we cannot get them back.
Where we were in 1995 was like discovering a Garden of Eden to share. Where we are today is looking at a hellscape that I pray God our children and grandchildren do not inherit from us.
It is shocking to me that many of the people I served on pro-parks boards with over many years, are nowhere in evidence. I do not know where the leadership is that is organizing a mass response to this death spiral.
At age 74 I would have no qualms taking it on, because nobody loves the parks more than me. But if the old heads must come out and get on the front lines, it’s almost like we have lost already?
I know at least scores of highly educated and experienced Black and Brown younger leaders that could galvanize this movement if they have the support of the mainstream environmental community, which usually gets more than 90-percent of donated and/or grant dollars. Collaborations now are crucial.
It’s hard to believe that this time last year I was grinding hard to raise dollars to take influencers on an all-expense paid trip to the Grand Canyon and other national parks. Those people came back transformed and are ready to be activated with messages targeted to EVERYONE. I don’t know what’s going to happen next but I’m doing all I can to let EVERYONE know and pray that some of you decide to take it from there.
Citizenship comes with rights and responsibilities. It’s everyone’s responsibility now to petition our representatives and demand that they take all necessary steps to secure our birthright in the publicly owned lands system.
(Audrey Peterman is the recipient of the National Parks Conservation Association’s Centennial Award 2024, “for contributions toward ensuring our National Parks for their Second Century of Service. Substack: Get Onboard Audrey’s Joy Train.)
