Native America Calling: Is the Antiquities Act an antique?

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Wednesday, January 22, 2025

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Is the Antiquities Act an antique?

With the support of area tribes, President Joe Biden just designated the Chuckwalla National Monument in California using his authority under the Antiquities Act.

That same law, which dates to 1906, created the path for President Barack Obama to designate the Bears Ears National Monument in Utah. Both actions stirred opposition from ranchers, oil drillers, and other profit-driven entities who see a better use for that land.

Now, that opposition is surfacing in Congress, as a bill to strip the president’s use of the Antiquities Act. Tune into Native America Calling to talk about what the Antiquities Act does, and how it protects — and hinders — Native American interests.

Video by Bill Wick: Proposed Chuckwalla National Monument in California

Guests on Native America Calling

Shannon O’Loughlin (citizen of the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma), chief executive and attorney for the Association on American Indian Affairs

Arnold Thomas, tribal vice-chairman for the Shoshone-Paiute Tribes of the Duck Valley Indian Reservation in Idaho and Nevada

Matthew Campbell (enrolled member of the Native Village of Gambell on the Saint Lawrence Island in Alaska), deputy director of the Native American Rights Fund