TO GO WITH AFP STORY by Lucie AUBOURG, "In US national parks, a historical wound begins to heal"
Raeshaun Ramon, ranger at Saguaro National Park, holds syrup from Saguaro fruits on November 17, 2023. Most national parks were set up in areas that are Indigenous ancestral lands. From the 19th century onward, Native Americans were expelled from them or forced to cede them via treaties with unequal terms. When Ramon first donned the distinctive green-and-gray uniform of a US National Park Service ranger, he feared his Native American tribe would judge him for his choice. As a member of the Tohono O'odham Nation, he didn't want to talk too much about his new job at Arizona's Saguaro National Park. "I was afraid of what my people might think of me," the 28-year-old confides."Why work for a place that has done us so much harm in the past?" (Photo by Lucie AUBOURG / AFP)