An internecine battle rages over tribal membership and identity.
Social justice
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No, national parks are not America’s ‘best idea’
There’s potential to alienate people who value ideas more pertinent to them than the parks.
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National Park Service chief expands sexual harassment probe
Upcoming survey to determine if misconduct at the Grand Canyon represents a widespread problem.
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Who belongs in the natural world?
The lack of diversity in the outdoors often prompts people of color to ponder their sense of belonging in nature.
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Grand Canyon abolishes river district in response to sexual harassment allegations
The abrupt decision leaves the future of NPS river management up in the air.
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The growing influence of Hispanic voters in the West
Latinos make up 21 percent of the region’s electorate, and election-day turn-out is on the rise.
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Podcast: Why won’t white West Coast progressives talk about racism?
Conversations about race need to happen regularly, not just every once in a while.
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Utah senator blocks emergency bill for Flint, Michigan
Lee’s opposition helps build his brand as a hardcore conservative.
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Recent criminal justice reforms by state
California has led the way for other states to reduce prison populations.
Posted inFebruary 22, 2016: Fractured
Far from home, the West’s foreign sheepherders get a pay raise
Since the ’50s, Western states have brought in international workers but offer them few of the benefits given other workers.
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Montana tribe’s water deal clears major Senate milestone
Blackfeet have waited decades to resolve their water claims but Congress is in no hurry.
Posted inFebruary 2, 2016: Sagebrush Insurgency
In Washington, activists and the ‘necessity defense’ on trial
The ‘Delta 5’ made a legal and moral case for their actions, with mixed results.
Posted inFebruary 2, 2016: Sagebrush Insurgency
In ‘Gold Fame Citrus,’ the nascent genre of cli-fi looks to California
A new climate change novel predicts a dystopian West of sand and refugees.
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Grand Canyon park’s 15-year failure on sexual harassment
Interior Department investigation shows a history of harassment, hostility and retaliation.
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Dispatch from Blockadia
Where enviros are uniting with social justice and tribal rights activists in the Northwest to stop new fossil fuel development.
Posted inDecember 21, 2015: Secrets of the Deep
Highway injustice in Denver’s Latino neighborhoods
Poor districts have breathed I-70’s pollution for decades. Now they’re facing its expansion.
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Colorado, other Western states support Syrian refugee program
Governors choose sides on Obama’s Syrian resettlement program.
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Ranch Diaries: What life’s like as a female rancher
Some ranchers still say women ruin horses and a rancher and his wife can be paid at two-for-the-price-of-one.
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Photos: Tracing poverty in the West
Over 11.5 million people live in poverty in Western states; here are intimate portraits of their communities.
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In Wyoming, the future of Native health depends on kids
Infant mortality among Wyoming’s Native population is more than double that of the state’s white population.