Save Big Bend

April 4th at 4:00pm, join us to rally to SAVE BIG BEND at the ATX Capitol. South Steps, y’all 🤠 We organize until the wall is stopped. Ways you can help - - mark your calendar - 4/4, 4:00 - support @nobigbendwall and go to & nobigbendwall.org for more action - sign the petition - DM for more ways to support like volunteering for our team on 4/4 (you’ll get a free hat or shirt) - Tell everybody you know. This ain’t over. The largest state park in Texas, our neighbors’ land, and your river is still under direct threat. We rally on 4/4. Don’t mess with Texas. 📷 @sselvidge

Save Big Bend - ATX Capitol Protest - 4/4, 4:00 - Capitol Steps. Details & links on profile. Apparently, thousands of y’all want to protest the construction of a huge border wall in Big Bend National Park and Big Bend Ranch State Park. So I got permits, speakers, & sponsorship for the South Steps of the ATX Capitol. We aren’t letting them take an inch of our park. We don’t stop until this is over. Nearly 100 years ago, America was in deep crisis, on the verge of world war, economic catastrophe, rampant homelessness, ecological degradation, worldwide fascism - and we made a promise to future generations that Big Bend and our natural places belonged to us and our children. That we’d safeguard these places to secure our future. It’s the only thing that kept us together in our darkest times. I know things are hard. But last week, a line was crossed, and something changed. I’ve met the bravest people I have ever known, from all over Texas and the nation, who are willing to put our differences aside and work to the ends of the earth to make sure that this promise still stands. That Big Bend and our public lands remain our future, our heritage, our soul, our economy, and our last hope. To this day our parks system remains one of our greatest gifts to America and the world. In places like the greater Big Bend region they are the lifeblood of the economy. Our parks were molded and created in times of crisis just like this, by people just like us. 4/4/4, ATX Capitol, tell everyone you know. Call your reps. Tell them you oppose this. Tell em we’re coming. This one is for all of our parks. I’ll see y’all outside. Google form on profile to volunteer & support - I need organizers ASAP, we got work to do. Official agenda soon. Call your reps + other WTX organizers via @nobigbendwall #savebigbend @savebigbend

JOIN US TONIGHT @ 7PM! 📣 Plans are advancing for border wall construction and related infrastructure across parts of West Texas, including areas that affect the Greater Big Bend region. Hear from two outstanding speakers: 💚 Bob Krumenaker (former Superintendent of Big Bend National Park; President, Keep Big Bend Wild) - What makes Big Bend unique—and what could be lost. 💚 Christina Hernandez (Executive Director, Big Bend Conservation Alliance; Native American leader with deep generational roots in West Texas) - What’s happening on the ground—and how we can respond. Link in bio or register at bit.ly/bb-mtg 🔗

join us this sunday for a plant sale + swap in awareness and protest of the proposed wall in big bend national park. NO AL MURO. A WALL IS NOT NEEDED. sunday, april 26 2-7pm at @poisongirlbar 🍵 i ( @mediating_space ) will be serving herbal tisanes and selling my 5x7 film prints of big bend’s landscape 🌾 native, medicinal & edible plants from @bisonandbearplants @savebigbend @nobigbendwall i had the honor of visiting big bend for the first time last november while 30 weeks pregnant for my babymoon. the magic of this land is potent - we must continue to urge our representatives to stop this. come learn how you can help! “The profound beauty and wild landscape of Texas’ Big Bend region has long-inspired Texans, Americans, and visitors from across the world. The Department of Homeland Security plans to build a border wall through this treasured region, despite historically limited crossings. This is one of the most remote stretches of the border, where harsh terrain already functions as a deterrent. A permanent barrier would industrialize public lands, harm the local economy, decrease private property values, endanger arid and riparian ecosystems, diminish protected dark skies, and destroy irreplaceable archaeological sites. Border security should be specific to place. The Big Bend is NOT the place for a wall.“ thank you @anisemedina for organizing! 🤍🌀🪨

HOUSTON! Grow Awareness for Big Bend through a Community Plant Sale & Swap! 🌞 🌱 ♥️ @savebigbend @poisongirlbar @bisonandbearplants @mediating_space When: Sunday, April 26th, 2 - 7 pm Where: Poison Girl Bar, located at 1641 Westheimer Rd. Unit B, 77006. Parking is available via the street and in the neighborhood. What: A community plant sale and swap! Attendees are welcome to buy, sell, and trade amongst themselves or with us. We will be selling a variety of indoor and outdoor plants, priced from $2 to $30. Along with myself and the Poison Girl staff, Bison and Bear Plants, a local nursery, will be selling native, medicinal, and edible plants. Mediating Space will be offering herbal blends and fresh-brewed tea, along with photographic prints of Big Bend’s landscape. And most importantly… Why? The purpose of this plant sale is not only to bring the community together in a meaningful way, but also to raise awareness about a bipartisan issue that is important to many Texans. Right now, Big Bend National Park and the surrounding area are under severe threat. A proposed border wall of over 150 miles would cut off American access to the Rio Grande River and devastate the lives of the Texans and wildlife that depend on it. Land would be forcibly taken from private landowners, tourism would plummet, the economy would fail, resources would be strained,  wildlife would be decimated. Big Bend would lose its status as one of the scenic, remote, and pristine places in the world. While the fate of the physical barrier in the park remains in question, any border development in the region raises the same issues. Save Big Bend, a vast bipartisan coalition of locals and native Texans, is continuing to organize until a peaceful resolution that legally bars any border wall and infrastructure in the region is reached. Come learn about how you can help! For any questions, contact Anise at (832) 450-5237. Resources: @savebigbend @noalmuro @nobigbendwall @togetherforbigbend

There are a lot of folks out there that don’t understand the Big Bend is a lot bigger than just the national park, and we are fighting for all of it. We know at this time the national and state parks are marked “safe” from a physical wall, but we still have so much land and river access to protect. Our display at Santa Elena canyon was not just about protecting the park, it was about protecting the entire Rio Grande corridor that flows through public, private, ancestral, and sacred lands that are all part of the Chihuahua Desert ecosystem, the largest desert in North America and the most biodiverse desert in the western hemisphere. All 500+ miles of river in the Big Bend sector are critical to not only our own little border town communities full of farmers, ranchers, and outfitters, but to every living being that calls this desert home. A wall anywhere in the Big Bend sector would have devastating effects, that’s why we won’t shut up about it even though the map changed colors through the parks. We have to keep fighting. No wall, no wire, no way. @governorabbott @johncornyn @sentedcruz

I grew up in West Texas and Big Bend has always held a special place in my heart. Last summer, I got engaged in Terlingua under a dark sky glittering with stars. The skies in that part of Texas are unmatched…wide, open spaces with sunsets and sunrises that aren’t done justice with words. I cannot imagine a world where a giant wall of steel cuts through those skies and that landscape. A giant symbol of hatred cutting through one of the most beautiful places in the world. As we sang “This land is your land, this land is my land” together as a group, I could feel all the beautiful memories of this beautiful park washing over everyone. Please don’t let those become JUST memories. #bigbend #protest #bigloveforbigbend

This morning, hundreds of Far West Texans showed up at Santa Elena Canyon to display our unified opposition to the proposed border wall through the Big Bend sector. We aren’t just fighting against a wall— we are fighting for the Rio Grande, that it may flow freely through this landscape, unencumbered by unnecessary infrastructure and continue to nourish all life forms that call this desert home. We are fighting for our history, culture, and livelihoods. We are fighting for public, private, ancestral, and sacred lands in the Big Bend region. No wall, no razor wire, nothing to impede any beings’ access to the mighty Rio Grande. @governorabbott You must stop this.

It’s the crown jewel of Texas—our most treasured landscape, the purest expression of what it means to be Texan. And they want to put a wall through it. But it won’t stop at the boundaries of the parks. The real impact will fall on the people who call Big Bend home—families, landowners, farmers, and ranchers who rely on the Rio Grande to sustain their crops and cattle. It will hit the wildlife just as hard, cutting off access to the only reliable water source for miles. Under the guise of “border security,” the federal government—alongside the willing participation of the State of Texas—is pushing forward plans for a border wall that severs the lifeline both people and wildlife depend on. And if you don’t comply? Eminent domain. The forced seizure of privately owned land, whether you agree or not—land that’s been held by families in this region for generations. Tomorrow, we make it clear: Texans will not stand for a border wall anywhere in the Big Bend region. 4/4 at 4pm, rain or shine. South steps of the Texas State Capitol. Show up and let our leaders know this isn’t what we want. Follow @nobigbendwall and @savebigbend for more information on how to show up for Big Bend—safely and peacefully. #stopthesteel #noalmuro #nobigbendwall

STOP THE WALL - Big Bend still needs us. Rain or shine, we rally at the South Steps of the TX Capitol at 4PM. We can fix this together. What to expect - - This is a family friendly, peaceful rally for everybody. We have a dozen speakers and great musical guests. - We have a volunteer team, safety squad, constable/DPS presence, and street medics on duty. - As long as the weather is safe, speeches, performances, and tables are prepared for rain and you should be too! - What to bring - This is a 2.5 hour rally. Bring water, a snack, comfy shoes, personal medication, a rain jacket. Bring a sign! Patagonia is hosting a sign-making session at 316 Congress at 2PM. Bring a friend, and bring your voices. We’re here to be heard. - What not to bring - Weapons, glass containers, drugs & alcohol, open flames, drones, AND large rigid objects over 12 inches (THIS INCLUDES POSTS FOR SIGNS, BANNERS, FLAGS - you cannot attach your sign to a 2X4). Law enforcement will restrict items they deem a safety risk. - Parking & Transportation - Capitol Visitors Parking Garage - 1201 San Jacinto Blvd, Austin, Texas 78701 - 5 min walk. UT Health Center Garage - 1601 Trinity Street, Austin, TX 78701 - 10 min walk Street Parking Meters Rally Rules - We are fully permitted for a peaceful protest at the South Steps of the Capitol. No permit is required for peaceful protest on public sidewalks. Do not block pedestrian access or building entrances. Do not step into the street. Do not enter private property. Do not place objects on sidewalks. There can be no commercial activity at the capitol. Do not attach signs or materials to buildings, fences, trees. Do not damage Capitol property, including landscaping, monuments, & facilities. Follow directions from event organizers and Capitol officials at all times. We love y’all. We can Save Big Bend together. See y’all there.

Q and A out now with @yessfun and @laiks____ about the border wall that’s rapidly closing in on the Big Bend region. Link in bio. Excepts here. Photos by @sun_rocket and @laiks____ YESSENIA FUNES OK, so break it down: What is going on with the border wall this time? LAIKEN JORDAHL Right now, border walls are rapidly expanding into the Big Bend region of Texas, which is the most remote and least-crossed section of the entire U.S.-Mexico border. There have been a number of contracts already issued. Environmental and cultural resource protection laws have been waived. Surveyors are on site. We’re seeing survey stakes in the ground. The wall is rapidly closing in. YESSENIA Yeah, I’m seeing a few headlines saying that the wall won’t be going through Big Bend, after all, but that’s not quite right, is it? LAIKEN People here on the ground know that they cannot trust an unofficial online map. People here are seeing contractors swarming all over the community. As is true of much of Texas, there’s not a lot of goodwill between them and the feds. And people believe that if they stop paying attention, they’re going to lose access to their lifeblood, the Rio Grande. YESSENIA For readers who want to take action to help stop the border wall expansion through Big Bend, what should they do? LAIKEN There’s a big day of action: April 4th, this Saturday. We’re appealing to Gov. Abbott in Texas, but also to all of our members of Congress to advocate for us to pass legislation that restricts the use of federal funds to build walls in the Big Bend region. People should also follow the amazing local coalition here that’s popped up @nobigbendwall . And then, if people are able, they should come visit this place, come experience just how wild and rugged and remote it is. Anybody who sets foot here, anybody who’s lucky enough to swim in the Rio Grande, they will go on and fight like hell to protect this place. It’s the one place left that allows you to dream of what the border could be. If they wall this place off, it’ll extinguish our ability to dream of a better future for the borderlands.

This Saturday, April 4 at 4pm, there will be a critical rally on the Texas state capitol steps to bring attention to the imminent threat of a wall through our beloved Big Bend region, cutting off farmers and ranchers, wildlife and all Americans from the mighty Rio Grande, forever. This is a non-negotiable deal. We cannot allow them to destroy the cultural, economic and environmental life-blood of this last beautiful Texas frontier. If you’re in or around Austin this weekend, come join us, and make your presence known and your voice heard in the defense of the people and wildlife along the Rio Grande. @nobigbendwall @savebigbend