Biden declares October 11 Indigenous Peoples' Day and says restoring national monuments is the 'easiest thing I've ever done so far as President'

Authored by businessinsider.com and submitted by PepeBabinski

President Joe Biden declared October 11 Indigenous Peoples' Day.

Biden acknowledged in a Columbus Day proclamation that European explorers harmed Native Americans.

On Friday, the Biden administration restored protections for two national monuments in Utah.

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Following years of campaigning by Native Americans for federal recognition, President Joe Biden issued the first presidential proclamation of Indigenous Peoples' Day, which he declared would be observed on October 11 in honor of America's first inhabitants.

"Since time immemorial, American Indians, Alaska Natives, and Native Hawaiians have built vibrant and diverse cultures — safeguarding land, language, spirit, knowledge, and tradition across the generations," a White House proclamation release from Biden said.

Although Indigenous Peoples' Day will be celebrated on the same date as Columbus Day, Biden acknowledged the atrocities inflicted on Indigenous communities by European explorers in another proclamation and urged the country not to try and bury "shameful episodes of our past."

"For Native Americans, western exploration ushered in a wave of devastation: violence perpetrated against Native communities, displacement and theft of Tribal homelands, the introduction and spread of disease, and more," a White House proclamation from Biden said. "On this day, we recognize this painful past and recommit ourselves to investing in Native communities, upholding our solemn and sacred commitments to Tribal sovereignty, and pursuing a brighter future centered on dignity, respect, justice, and opportunity for all people."

Biden also announced Friday that his administration will restore protections for the Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante national monuments in Utah, as well two monuments in New England.

"This may be the easiest thing I've ever done so far as President," Biden said Friday during a speech outside the White House.

Former President Donald Trump had previously revoked protections for thousands of acres across the four monuments, Indian Country Today reported, which opened them up to mining, commercial fishing, and other developments.

"Today's announcement, it's not just about national monuments. It's about this administration centering the voices of Indigenous people and affirming the shared stewardship of this landscape with tribal nations," said Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland, a citizen of the Laguna Pueblo nation.

chillyhellion on October 9th, 2021 at 17:01 UTC »

I was born on October 12th. As a native Alaskan, it's pretty cool to go from sharing a birthday with Columbus Day to sharing a birthday with Indigenous Peoples' Day in my lifetime.

msyctta on October 9th, 2021 at 15:34 UTC »

Great, now do election day

CaptainNoBoat on October 9th, 2021 at 15:04 UTC »

If you've never been to Grand Staircase Escalante or the Bears Ears region, you should try to at some point in your life.

It is an absolutely incredible natural/cultural region in the world. Dwellings of the ancestral Puebloan/Fremont culture are everywhere and the landscape is jaw-dropping.

This is a massive victory for the area, environmentalists, outdoor enthusiasts, and the Ute, Hopi, Paiute cultures (and more).

Just always be mindful of regulations, don't promote the locations of ruins, leave no trace, etc..

Edit: Yes, I am both saying:

1) IF you visit archaeological sites, not to promote specific ruins (i.e. social media / geotagging, etc).

2) That these extremely large regions of public lands are worth visiting if given the opportunity, even if just driving through, and show people just how special they are. People that actually see these lands generally gain a lot more respect for them, along with ideas of supporting preservation and conservation (instead of the drilling and atrocities that were going to take place).

The best thing about them is you can visit them with zero impact on any of the resources. If you haven't, I highly recommend learning about Leave No Trace before going to any public lands.