What Is the Antiquities Act, and How Is the 120-Year-Old Law Being Tested by Trump?

Together, the two presidential proclamations could open up more than 3 million acres of formerly protected land—including sacred tribal sites—to exploration for oil, minerals, and gas, as well as motorist and non-motorist recreation.

Preservation advocates and tribal representatives have criticized the changes, while suggesting that greater cooperation between the federal government and tribal leadership is required.

The Bears Ears Inter-Tribal Coalition—which includes the Hopi Tribe, Navajo Nation, Ute Mountain Ute Tribe, Pueblo of Zuni, and Ute Indian Tribe—said that the sites contain “thousands of sacred cultural sites and important areas of spiritual significance.” 

In a press release shared Tuesday, the coalition wrote, “Tribal Nations understand Bears Ears as an interconnected living cultural landscape, where the land itself—and the relationships among its cultural sites, waters, plants, animals, and sacred places—are what must be protected.”