Today, the National Trust for Historic Preservation and a coalition of seven other local and national organizations moved to reactivate litigation at the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia in defense of Bears Ears National Monument.

In addition to the National Trust, the coalition of Native American, conservation, historic preservation, and other organizations involved in the suit includes— Conservation Lands Foundation, Utah Diné Bikéyah, Archaeology Southwest, Patagonia Works, The Access Fund, A’Nuche, and the Society of Vertebrate Paleontology.

"Bears Ears is a place of profound cultural and historic significance, and its irreplaceable resources deserve lasting protection," said Brent Leggs, President and CEO of the National Trust for Historic Preservation. "We are proud to continue our long-standing collaboration with Tribal nations and our partners in defending Bears Ears and the principles of preservation embodied by the Antiquities Act.”

The National Trust has long advocated for the protection of Bears Ears as a cultural landscape, an area rich with archaeological resources, prehistoric cliff dwellings, paleontological resources, and sites sacred to many Native American tribes. In 2014, Bears Ears was added to the National Treasures program, and in 2016, the National Trust listed the monument as one of America’s 11 Most Endangered Historic Places. The National Trust has also made grants totaling $50,000 for surveys and stabilization work.

Following these efforts, President Obama designated a 1.35 million-acre national monument in 2016, and established the Bears Ears Commission, intended to consist of tribally designated members from the Hopi Nation, Navajo Nation, Ute Mountain Ute Tribe, Ute Indian Tribe of the Uintah Ouray, and Zuni Tribe. This was the first time that the Antiquities Act was used to establish a national monument with the explicit goal of ensuring that tribal expertise and knowledge would be considered by the federal agencies in making management decisions.

Before management planning processes for the new monument could begin, President Trump issued a proclamation in 2017 that cut 85 percent of its land. The National Trust and seven likeminded groups challenged the proclamation in court shortly thereafter. This original case was eventually overtaken by the fact that President Biden redesignated the Bears Ears National Monument in 2021.

The original lawsuit has remained on hold, until now. Following another presidential proclamation in July that eliminated nearly 90 percent of the protected land in Bears Ears, the National Trust and coalition partners were left with no choice but to reopen their pending 2017 case and challenge the latest unlawful federal actions threatening the National Monument.