Grijalva: Secretary Zinke Shouldn’t Pass Off His Support for Confederate Monuments as Deference to Native American Public Opinion

Washington, D.C. – Ranking Member Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) released the following statement on Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke’s recent comment that he supports keeping up statues to prominent Confederate political and military figures because taking them down would upset “native Indians.”

“If Secretary Zinke thinks monuments to slave-owning Confederate generals are important to Native American culture, he’s just as out of touch as the president. Books, museums and oral histories educate people. Statues glorify individuals, including many who never deserved the honor. If Secretary Zinke had actually spoken with tribal leaders, instead of just assuming he knows what they care about, he wouldn’t be trying to destroy Bears Ears National Monument – which is sacred to multiple tribes – and he wouldn’t pass off his support for racist monuments as deference to Native Americans.”

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