Protesters gather in opposition to Utah’s public land lawsuits

People rally in opposition of Utah’s lawsuit attempting to take control of federal lands at the Capitol in Salt Lake City on Saturday, Jan. 11, 2025. (Photo by Spenser Heaps for Utah News Dispatch)

Hundreds of protesters convened on the steps of the state capitol Saturday in a public lands rally, condemning some of Utah’s recent attempts to reverse national monument designations and transfer federal land to the state. 

“The urgency has never been greater and the need for action has never been more pressing,” said Louise Fernandez, a youth activist. 

Fernandez was one of several hundred who braved heavy snow and cold temperatures Saturday, in a crowd that included indigenous activists, environmental groups and a handful of current and former state lawmakers. Scattered among the crowd were signs that read “Protect wild Utah,” “I stand with Bears Ears,” and “Don’t let Cox take our rocks.” 

The state currently has several environmental, public lands and regulatory lawsuits aimed at the federal government — two of the more high-profile suits seeking to reverse public land decisions made at the federal level. 

People rally in opposition of Utah’s lawsuit attempting to take control of federal lands at the Capitol in Salt Lake City on Saturday, Jan. 11, 2025. (Photo by Spenser Heaps for Utah News Dispatch)

Filed in August, Utah is arguing it’s unconstitutional for the federal government to hold onto “unappropriated” land, which the state defines as public land without a designation. There are about 18.5 million acres of unappropriated in Utah — that land does not include national forests, national parks or national monuments. 

Utah has long opposed the federal government’s land management policies, arguing that burdensome regulations stymie industry, limit local control and tax revenue, and make it difficult to manage forests to prevent wildfires. Utah leaders, not the federal government, are better poised to manage the state’s land, they argue. Gov. Spencer Cox and numerous other state politicians have vowed not to privatize any land if their lawsuit is successful.  

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But protesters at the capitol Saturday had little faith that the state would make good on its promise. 

That includes Terry Tempest Williams, a renowned writer and conservationist, who said Cox has “lost his way.” 

“Our governor and attorney general have exchanged the rule of law for greed. In the beginning, Gov. Spencer Cox called for unity among us. And I wonder what happened. Now he has chosen to sow the seeds of division, bringing forward a bogus lawsuit under the guise of ‘Stand for Our Land,” she told the crowd. “Utah’s land grab lawsuit has no legal standing.”

Renowned writer and activist Terry Tempest Williams speaks at a rally in opposition of Utah’s lawsuit attempting to take control of federal lands at the Capitol in Salt Lake City on Saturday, Jan. 11, 2025. (Photo by Spenser Heaps for Utah News Dispatch)

“Stand for Our Land” is Utah’s media campaign, which includes billboards, print, TV and radio ads and a website advocating for the state’s position in the lawsuit. That PR campaign, along with attorney fees, has cost taxpayers over $1 million, a number that will continue to rise. 

In response, the Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance is now suing Utah, calling the Stand for Our Land campaign and legal challenge “unlawful land grab litigation” that violates the state constitution. 

The state is also suing the Biden administration over its decision to restore Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante national monuments to their original sizes. In 2017, both monuments were reduced by President Donald Trump — Bears Ears was cut from 1.36 million acres to 1 million acres, and Grand Staircase-Escalante from 1.35 million acres to 229,000 acres. 

Then, in 2021, President Joe Biden re-expanded both monuments. Utah is now challenging that decision in federal appeals court. 

Utah’s attempt to scale back the monuments has environmental activists worried it would open the door to extractive industries, like oil, gas or mining — Bears Ears in particular is of rich cultural significance for the state’s tribes, and many at the protest feared that a reduction could lead to the destruction of sacred sites. 

“For far too long, these lands, our lands, have been under constant threat. Time and time again, those in power have sought to strip these lands of their beauty, essence and life,” said Fernandez. “They want to take what is precious and exploit the earth’s limited resources, all while ignoring the irreversible damage being done.” 

Senate Minority Leader Luz Escamilla, D-Salt Lake City, called both suits “ridiculous” on Saturday, to the tune of applause from protesters. 

“Those lawsuits are spending hundreds of millions of dollars of our state budget that could go to education, food security, health care,” Escamilla said, calling for “collective action” to oppose the legal challenges. 

Utah Senate Minority Leader Luz Escamilla, D-Salt Lake City, talks to renowned writer and activist Terry Tempest Williams, right, after they both spoke at a rally in opposition of Utah’s lawsuit attempting to take control of federal lands at the Capitol in Salt Lake City on Saturday, Jan. 11, 2025. (Photo by Spenser Heaps for Utah News Dispatch)

Escamilla said she and other Democrats in the Legislature are opposed to the lawsuits on two fronts — there’s a philosophical disagreement over who should manage land, she said, arguing that the federal government helps hold the state accountable. And it’s a waste of money, she said. 

“We don’t think it’s the correct way of spending our resources. And there’s no standing, so we’re going to lose this lawsuit,” she said.

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Image Credits and Reference: https://www.yahoo.com/news/protesters-gather-opposition-utah-public-015818414.html