The city of Denver returns 14 bison to Native lands

As a form of reparations to Native communities, the city of Denver is returning 14 bison to Indigenous tribes. NPR reports that the city, which operates two conservation herds, typically auctions off “surplus” (their word) bison to prevent overgrazing. This year, however, the animals will go toward rebuilding tribal herds, a reversal of centuries-old patterns that began with white settlers decimating native bison populations. “It just really made a lot of sense to possibly look and see how we could work with other tribes to maybe donate bison to the establishment of these herds that are starting all over the place,” said Scott Gilmore of Denver Parks and Recreation. In recent years, bison have become a focus for Native food sovereignty efforts, like the Tanka “bison bar” initiative.