A dramatic show at Yosemite National Park sparked a large -scale debate after the American flag was separated upside down on El Capitan, highlighting concerns about employee discounts and freezing federal employment that left the park in the turmoil. The bold protest work occurred on February 22, coinciding with the famous Firefall phenomenon in the park, which attracts thousands of visitors annually.
The sign was suspended by a group of six demonstrators, who descended in the Pacific, which is 7500 feet long and obtained the flag. The spectators initially believed that it was part of the scene, but when the message became clear, discussions erupted about the broader effects of cutting jobs in the national park.
The park employees cut the public safety at risk
The protest follows the larger of the last workers in Yosemite, where many full -time employees, including medical emergency technicians, firefighters in land lands, have been rejected, and even the only locks in the park. The move came after thousands of job offers were canceled due to the freezing of federal employment in Donald Trump, leaving the hikers into consideration and in the crisis, according to what he said. Sfgate.
The demonstrators issued a statement explaining their actions, warning that Yosemit and other public lands “are attacked.” They accused the Ministry of Interior of giving priority to the interests of drilling and mining for conservation and criticized the rejection of thousands of employees throughout the United States.
The statement stated: “The launch of thousands of employees regardless of the situation or performance is the first step in destabilizing the protection in its place for these wonderful places.”
Photographer Bretani Colt, who was in Yosemit to pick up the fire, described the moment when the science saw. “I knew instinctively that it should be a desperate appeal to protect public lands,” she said.
A national garden in chaos
Yosemite, which extends to the area of approximately Rod Island, attracts between 3 million and 5 million visitors annually. The park was preparing to implement the reservation system for crowd management, but with the Trump administration review, the plans stopped. The number of employees is due to the garden operations, which leads to fears of the risks of public safety, overcrowding, and environmental deterioration, according to what he said. Sfgate.
“What happens if someone is injured and there is no EMT to respond? What happens when no one to maintain roads and camps? What happens when the closed bathrooms force visitors to reduce themselves in the wild?
Fears of employment levels were exacerbated by directing an email from the Trump administration, which demanded federal Park employees to submit weekly work summaries to an external email that is not guaranteed or considered a resignation. The move was condemned by the coalition to protect the American national parks, which represents more than 3,400 former and current Park employees.
“Federal employees are accountable through a fixed leadership chain, yet this administration continues to cause unnecessary chaos,” said Phil Francis, Chairman of the Coalition Executive Council.
Political repercussions and increased concerns
The flag remained upside down for several hours before the demonstrators remove themselves. Another similar protest occurred at El Capitan in June, when climbers commented a sign of “stopping genocide” in solidarity with the Palestinians.
Meanwhile, garden officials were significantly silent, and they failed to respond to multiple requests for comment.
The freezing of the Trump administration’s employment, which affected thousands of federal employees, has left Yusmit Hysmet to prepare for the peak tourism season with skeleton staff. Cicely Multoon’s supervisor was appointed to retire, adding more uncertainty to an already unstable position.
“We are preparing for complete chaos,” said one of the current Yosemite employees, who spoke unknown due to the fear of revenge. “There is no clear leadership, and visitors will leave their motivation for themselves.”
Without a reservation system in place, Rangers fears the repetition of 2018, when the Trump Yosemite government is closed. With the absence of Rangers Park in the service, visitors challenge the regulations, receive garbage on the scenic views, and even defecate near the closed water cycles.
“If this summer reservation system is not implemented, it will be free for everyone,” Ken Yajer, head of the Yusemit climbing association, warned. “Without enough employees, visitors will stop wherever they want, lead to meadows, and bump wildlife.”
Undoubted future for the iconic American Park
Senator California Alex Badilla invited the Ministry of Interior to reconsider deep recruitment discounts. In a message signed by 21 Senate members, he warned that without caffeine seasonal employees, visitor centers can close, emergency response times will decrease, and park facilities will deteriorate.
With the expectation of millions of expected and limited visitors to safety and operations employees, the future of Yosmaite is still inaccurate. As the national park lovers and specialists continue to maintain the maintenance, the protest in El Capitan succeeded in drawing the national attention to a crisis that can be revealed that could have long -term consequences for one of the most landscapes in America.