WE. WON.
On October 2, I was in El Paso when U.S. District Judge Kathleen Cardone issued an emergency injunction to block border-barrier and road construction across the Big Bend region. Cheers and celebrations reverberated from El Paso to the folks I visited with in Terlingua that weekend to allies across the state and country.
Earlier this year, the federal government waived dozens of laws to fast-track construction of 30-foot steel fencing, 6-foot vehicle barriers and surveillance technology through Big Bend National Park, Big Bend Ranch State Park and across the Big Bend region.
In August, construction equipment began clearing new roads through critical wildlife habitat, wilderness landscapes, and cultural and historic areas in the national park and surrounding regions.
After tens of thousands of you spoke up in outrage, the administration paused the construction. The Department of Homeland Security ended that pause on Sept. 30, but Judge Cardone issued the emergency injunction just two days later.
Thousands upon thousands of people have spoken up in defense of Big Bend, and this victory is for all of us. I especially want to thank our allies at Center for Biological Diversity, Keep Big Bend Wild, Texas Civil Rights Project, and the No Big Bend Wall coalition for their leadership in pressing this court case forward. Sierra Club, our Lone Star Chapter, and National Parks Conservation Association backed them in court, represented by Earthjustice.
But it’s also clear that the administration felt the pressure from people like you – nearby landowners, business owners and recreationalists, Texans from across the political spectrum, and people all across the country who came together to protect our natural treasures. Your voices matter.
This is not over. Only Congress can permanently protect Big Bend from border-barrier destruction. If you haven't contacted your representatives yet, please take action here.
There is no power like that of mother earth, la tierra madre. It’s been an honor to join forces with the Sierra Club Military Outdoors program, Outings program, Texas Sierra Club and Far Flung Outdoor Center to bring environmentalists and veterans together from across the country to see, first hand, what we’re defending in West Texas.
Ancient land gives willing hearts a power to heal, grow, and endure. What we give back in return is up to us. And it has been an honor to support this team on their journey to explore that question on a 5-day river trip through Boquillas Canyon and lands slated for border security infrastructure development.
You are the person we need right now to keep the pressure on, and protect our environment.