Like many federal agencies, the Department of the Interior, which oversees the National Park Service, kicked off June with a tweet recognizing the start of “Pride month.” The tweet included a picture of park rangers near the Stonewall Inn, which is maintained by the Park Service as a National Monument. The Stonewall Inn is known for the riots there that helped initiate the gay-rights movement; evidently, violence is commendable if it supports Democratic priorities.
“Pride” has also found a home in otherwise non-political parks. Perhaps the worst example in this regard is Yosemite. Earlier this month, the Yosemite LGBTQ+ Employee Resource Group partnered with a drag queen to host “Yosemite Pride Outside.” The drag queen, known as Pattie Gonia, led park employees and other guests on a pride march. The resource group also organized a number of other LGBT-themed events, including a speaker series covering topics like “trans history in Yosemite,” “nature as a healing space for queer Asian folks,” and “queer ecology.” The group claims to be sponsored by the Park Service and maintains an email address registered under the service’s official domain.
Acadia National Park’s official pride hike was planned for June 8. Its “queer bird walk,” designed to teach “about queerness through the bird world,” however, is scheduled for June 25. There is even a pride story time planned, which is advertised as “perfect for kids of all ages.”
Not to be left out are the national parks in the state of Washington. According to Washington’s National Park Fund, rangers from Olympic and Mt. Rainier National Parks, along with staff from several other sites administered by the Park Service, will be marching in the Seattle Pride Parade. Pictures of the event in past years show that the rangers marched in uniform.
In truth, it’s no longer surprising that our national parks would host such events, even for those of us who conceptualize the LGBT movement as a primarily urban phenomenon. It’s still worth highlighting, however, because it’s an important indicator of just how far progressive ideology has permeated our political bureaucracy. There is no aspect of the federal government anodyne or apolitical enough to escape the attention of progressive activists. Republican politicians need to be prepared to respond accordingly when they regain control of the executive branch, acting quickly to remove the DEI councils that support efforts like these pride events and replacing the administrators that allow them.
These events are a betrayal of the purpose of our national parks. Theodore Roosevelt said that in them, “we have fallen heirs to the most glorious heritage a people ever received.” They are supposed to be testaments to the beauty of nature when it is allowed to go unmolested by man. Americans who visit them should leave with a greater appreciation for our shared nation and an increased sense of their duty to preserve it. To that end, Roosevelt also warned against “vulgarizing charming landscapes with hideous advertisements.” I can think of very little that violates this principle more than organizing raucous marches in support of weird social movements through America’s wild places.