“This is a blatant attempt at gaslighting under the guise of transparency.  There’s only the lies and deception of those tasked with protecting the wild animals of this park.”

~ Brielle (as commented on TRNP’s Facebook page 10/18/2024)

Hello and Happy Sunday. 

A very long week is FINALLY over and as promised, I wanted to recap the gravity of what happened last week.  We are all now waiting for that CYA (Cover Your Ass) report Theodore Roosevelt National Park has promised us that will no doubt justify their heinous actions against our wild horses last week.  Look for something similar to their CYA Facebook page post justifying 2023 Filly Aspen’s death.  In case you missed it, you can view the post here: https://www.facebook.com/share/p/eaczqq86yBZ8drEs/

Full disclosure: This turned into a VERY long post, so I have decided to break it up in smaller pieces that are easier to digest.  I also want to say – please don’t believe every word I say.  Please do your own research.  Find YOUR own answers.  We already have and what I am sharing today is based on that research.  If anyone has FACTS to disprove what we are saying, please bring them forward.  REMEMBER: opinions are NOT facts AND you cannot say something is not a fact just because you don’t like it!  There is A TON of information we have gathered in the resource library section of our website.  If you want to know the facts behind where we stand on most things, you can find our answers there. 

Our social media pages NEVER contain the phrase “Negative comments are not allowed” in other words, you will only find comments on those pages that praise them or agree with what they say. All other comments are deleted. People are free to voice their opinion on our pages – a luxury we, and many of our followers, do not have on other pages.  The only thing that will get you blocked from our page are those “bots” asking for friend requests or people who are being disrespectful to our followers.  If you feel you have wrongly been blocked from our social media pages or know someone who has, please email me at info@chwha.org and I will either unblock you, or let you know why you are blocked.

I do want to start by answering what seems like a silly question to me…

Do I personally own any horses?

Ummm no.

Most people are aware that there are some significant differences between wild and domesticated horses.  I am never sure what this has to do with our advocacy work or how it makes us somehow less knowledgeable about what we have witnessed, documented, studied and experienced in the park.

My final answer to do I personally own any horses?

Yes, 196 of them.  ALL of you do too!  They live in Theodore Roosevelt National Park and all of us have the task of making sure the next generation can enjoy them the same way we are today.  Sadly, we just lost one of our beloved horses, 2023 Filly Aspen, as a result of this unnecessary roundup. 

We are hoping that these posts clear up some misconceptions, or at the very least, give a better understanding of how we came to the conclusions we did on different topics.  I believe that Chasing Horses Wild Horse Advocates has been pretty consistent with what we are asking from the park.  Really, we just want them to DO THEIR JOB!  Properly manage these wild horses who are entrusted to their care. 

If you read Dr. Castle McLaughlin’s report, watch our YouTube Horse Talks with her, or talk to her personally, you would know that this is something the park has NEVER embraced.  The history of the park wanting to eliminate the horses starts right around the time the fence went up and they realized wild horses were fenced in.  Dr. McLaughlin’s report can be found in the Resource Library section of our website.  To date, she is the ONLY person who has thoroughly researched the history of the wild horses in Theodore Roosevelt National Park. 

We do not change our mind to appease Theodore Roosevelt National Park, and we will not simply “tolerate” things that we think will actually hurt OUR wild horses.  We absolutely LOVE Theodore Roosevelt National Park! Our loyalty is to the wild horses that call the park home, first and foremost, and it always will be.

This roundup was hard on all of us who love these amazing wild horses.  These posts will share what we witnessed on our side of the fence last week as the helicopters started bringing in our beloved wild horses through the time that all the horses were processed and released. 

To the people from North Dakota Badlands Horse, Wild in North Dakota and Dakota Grown Photos who participated in ANY way in this round up – on the other side of the fence: You made a choice, and you stuck by it.  We were offered the same choice, and we declined.  Why?  Quite simply put, being a part of what happened this week to OUR wild horses, to US here at CHWHA, would have been the ultimate Judas kiss (the ultimate betrayal) to our wild horses .  You feel different, and that is your right.  You should stand by the decision you made. Contrary to popular belief, we don’t believe that everyone should think and feel EVERYTHING that we do.  Again, do your own research.  We feel we are standing in some good company of people we KNOW have done just that – researched our concerns and the FACTS that we have shared – people like Senator Hoeven and his staff, Governor Burgum and his staff, American Wild Horse Campaign, The Cloud Foundation, Oregon Wild Horse Organization, Save Our Wild Horses, not to mention our North Dakota State Legislators, respected members of the press and countless other organizations and individuals who have stood by us not only the last two years as CHWHA fought for these horses, but NOW as we work for federal protection for this herd.  I am boggled by the thought of the power those critics give me as they insinuate that I somehow have been able to brainwash such intelligent individuals and organizations. 

Yes, we GET LOUD!  That is what people who ADVOCATE for ANYTHING do!  There is NO advocacy in silence and like it or not, silence IS acceptance, and also a form of betrayal. 

We have also learned over the last couple of years that there are some amazing photographers out there!   SOME photographers are also advocates and some are just simply photographers.  Taking pretty pictures of wild horses (or anything you are passionate about) does NOT make you an advocate ESPECIALLY if you sit silently when the subject you love to photograph desperately needs your help.  That also doesn’t mean that people who just like to photograph and stay out of the drama are bad people.  I am simply noting that there is a huge difference between an advocate and a photographer. 

 We also know, and these groups have shown, that Theodore Roosevelt National Park COULD NOT have carried out the heinous actions against our wild horses this week without their help.  CHWHA and our followers and supporters stepped into The Arena and decided to do everything in our power to try to stop this roundup and the actions associated with it.  Those groups ALL stepped into their own Arena and decided to “be there for the horses” to make sure they were treated humanely. 

That sounds all well and good, but out of the other side of their mouths, they are saying that the park would not listen to them, and they did not have any power over decisions being made by the park.  Blake McCann himself told us very clearly that IF we chose to be a part of this roundup, we would NOT be able to voice ANY concerns about what was happening or decisions that were being made during this hideous process.  You know, we would NOT be allowed to ADVOCATE for these horses behind those closed doors. 

It would appear, according to what the other groups are saying, WE, the people, have NO RIGHT to tell Theodore Roosevelt National Park how to manage our wild horses. 

The thing is Theodore Roosevelt National Park is part of OUR FEDERAL GOVERNMENT! 

WE, THE PEOPLE, have EVERY right in this world to question our government.  Go back and look into some basic US History.  Our Founding Fathers believed we WOULD do just that – continue to question our government. 

Why? 

Because here in the UNITED STATES – we have a government that is OF THE PEOPLE, BY THE PEOPLE AND FOR THE PEOPLE! 

That includes Theodore Roosevelt National Park.

THERE ARE LAWS IN PLACE TO PREVENT WHAT JUST HAPPENED THIS WEEK AT TRNP.  If those laws are broken, then agencies are held accountable.  The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) is once such law put in place to help the PUBLIC have a say in what happens on OUR PUBLIC LANDS.  The National Park Service (NPS), like the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and Forest Service are all part of OUR PUBLIC LANDS!

I also want to note that the park cannot simply decide to remove the horses because they are tired of the taxpaying public asking questions that we have a right to ask and demanding transparency from this government agency.  THAT is exactly what they tried to do for the last 2 years. THAT is exactly why we were loud and CHWHA’s advocacy stopped their plans.  THAT is why we need state and federal legislation to protect these horses.  THAT is the #1 thing that CHWHA is working on. 

Again, WE, the people, should have had TRANSPARENCY BEFORE ANY ACTIONS happened last week.  We don’t get transparency AFTER the fact.  Now the park is scrambling to finish their CYA (Cover Your Ass) report that they say will be released this week sometime.  THAT is NOT transparency. 

Since we DID NOT get TRANSPARENCY, now we have to DEMAND ACCOUNTIBILTY for the heinous actions this park carried out on our wild horses last week that resulted in us losing one of our beloved wild horses, 1 year old filly Aspen. 

So yes, Chasing Horses Wild Horse Advocates will make sure that Theodore Roosevelt National Park is held accountable for their actions last week – EVEN IF that ONLY ends up being in the Court of Public Opinion.  Our lawyers and legislators will help us navigate through those processes. 

As the roundup continued, I was overwhelmed with questions coming in from ALL of you.  I mean it when I say that I could not possibly keep up!

Since the park sent out their press release, our website traffic increased by 2,000%, our social media reach has been over 100,000 people and our advocacy database increase by over 2,000 people!!!

We were receiving THOUSANDS of messages of outrage – most wanting to know what was happening on the other side of the fence, behind closed doors.  We weren’t there, but we KNEW who was: North Dakota Badlands Horse (NDBH), Wild in North Dakota (WIND) and Dakota Grown Photos all had representations at the roundup this week.  I know Tiffany made a heartfelt post the other day, but please do your own research, how many times has Tiffany posted on Wild in North Dakota?  A simple post attempting to separate herself from WIND now was endearing but absolutely not possible after all these years.  So, we said, if you have questions, ask the people with eyes on THAT side of the fence. 

And yes, we KNOW they signed volunteer paperwork from the park.  That paperwork ABSOLUTELY holds them to silence.  Another reason CHWHA chose to NOT participate in this horrific series of events. 

Be sure to check back tomorrow for Episode 2 of The View from This Side of the Fence!

Have a great day and don’t forget to use your anger and outrage to speak up for our TRNP wild horses.  We can’t let Aspen’s sacrifice of her life be in vain!

We have 2 Calls to Action for you:

This one is a petition to DEMAND that these collars come off OUR horses!

Please sign just ONCE and share!

https://secure.everyaction.com/x-5WrjPo20Cb4LGbj5PD-A2

This one is to send an email to elected officials DEMANDING TRNP be held accountable for their heinous actions against our wild horses!

You can send this as many times as you like! https://secure.everyaction.com/brPfquNQ2EqN-6XVh-16Rg2

Please share!

We also hope that you will consider making a tax deductible donation to help us with our critical advocacy work! You can make your tax deductible donation here: https://secure.everyaction.com/cBmDbRA6cUuzERpShcQOCg2

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