Dozens of people gathered Saturday and Monday in Montezuma County to stand in solidarity with federal workers.
The first event was at Mesa Verde National Park on Saturday, March 1.
That demonstration was a nationwide one, organized by a group called the Resistance Rangers. People gathered at the entrances of nearby national parks with signs at noon to illustrate their support of the parks, public lands and parks service workers.
There were protests at at least 145 sites that day, according to The New York Times.
Two days later, on Monday, March 3, community members headed to the Tres Rios Field Office in Dolores, where the Bureau of Land Management and Forest Service employees are housed.
Two like events were simultaneously happening in Bayfield and Durango to support Forest Service and BLM workers.
“First were the illegal firings of probationary workers across all federal departments,” said an employee at Tres Rios who asked not to be named. “The next cuts will be a formal reduction of the force, and that’s TBD.”
“We just want people to realize what we do,” they said. “The public would lose a lot if they lost us.”
They went on to express their “concern” for their job.
“It seems like anything could happen to any one of us,” they said. “I’m nervous.”
As more people filed into the entrance area of the Tres Rios office on Monday afternoon, the space became crowded and demonstrators were directed to a larger conference room where they continued conversation.
Amber Clark, the executive director of the Dolores River Boating Advocates, thanked everyone for being there and thanked the workers taking care of our public lands.
“It’s been a hard few weeks for the folks who work for these agencies,” said Clark.
“The public lands need you, we need you,” she said.
A former parks service firefighter spoke up and called the federal cuts “reprehensible.”
“I think about the friends I’ve lost, the bodies I’ve recovered,” he said. “Working for the feds, you put your time, body and soul into the job. I’m horrified they’d attack us.”
“None of us did this work to get rich,” another former federal worker chimed in. “We do it because we love it.”
It’s unclear how many federal cuts have happened to agencies in this area. To gauge local impact, a demonstrator on Monday asked people to raise their hand if they know someone who’s lost their job.
Of the roughly 50 people there, 10 people raised their hands.
“I had an hour to empty my office here,” said Ryan Schroeder, a former BLM rangeland management specialist who was fired on Feb. 18.
“We can’t do good work if people are gone, scared for their jobs, or locked out of systems,” he said. “I worry for every one of my coworkers thinking, ‘When is it my turn?’”
A Colorado Sun article published on Feb. 14 said that nationwide, there were “3,400 layoffs at the Forest Service and about 2,300 from the Interior Department’s National Park Service, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and Bureau of Land Management.”
Ten days later, on Feb. 24, the Sun wrote that the Trump administration is restoring some of those jobs, and will allow for additional seasonal hires.
But no later than March 13, agencies – like the Forest Service, BLM and Parks Service – must develop and submit “Agency Reorganization Plans” to make further cuts.
“The federal government is costly, inefficient, and deeply in debt. At the same time, it is not producing results for the American public,” the memorandum that directors from the U.S. Offices of Management and Budget and Personnel Management sent to department heads on Feb. 26.
“I’m not the end of these cuts,” said Schroeder.
Those at Tres Rios on Monday were encouraged to continue to call and write representatives.
“And chain ourselves to the ... whatever,” someone said.
Something that came out of the gathering was the need to organize.
Two notepads traveled in opposite directions around the room, where people jotted down their names and emails to stay connected.
Already, there’s a group on Facebook called the Four Corners Public Lands Defense Committee, though they’re working on other options for those not on social media to stay informed.
“These agencies are for the average American and public interest,” someone said as the notepads circled the room.
There were murmurs that the new administration’s actions are attempts to privatize public lands, and that it’s is chipping away at the public’s power.
“I have only swear words to say,” one woman said.
In thinking about organizing, Adam Kackstetter, a former federal worker, emphasized the need to “win over our neighbors” and to “change public opinion.”
We’ll need everyone, Kackstetter said, regardless of party affiliation, “to be together, finally.”
“Think about Chicken Creek, how people came together,” Clark said. “This is important and we’re going to fight.”
“They’re doing this because they think there’s not much we can do,” said Kackstetter.
He said individuals do have power, and can stop spending money in places that benefit billionaires and to keep showing up.
And keep sharing stories that make what these federal agencies do, visible.
“Thanks for being here, Forest Service. We’ll be here for you.“
