‘I’ll be fierce for all of us’: Deb Haaland, first Native American named interior secretary, accepts nomination

New Mexico representative Deb Haaland, the first Native American in US history to be named as interior secretary, has vowed to protect the land with her “fierce” efforts towards addressing the challenges of climate change and environmental injustice.

In her first comments after the announcement on Sunday by president-elect Joe Biden’s transition team, the congresswoman said she was humbled to accept her nomination.

After confirmation by the Senate, Ms Haaland’s selection into the cabinet would make her the first Native American to serve in the position that oversees all federal lands, including tribal lands. Ms Haaland’s nomination has been dubbed as historic and cheered by tribal leaders of indigenous communities, activists, and many Democratic leaders. 

Ms Haaland highlighted that her struggle during her childhood in Laguna Pueblo, one of the country’s 574 federally recognised tribes, has made her fierce.

“Growing up in my mother’s Pueblo household made me fierce. My life has not been easy — I struggled with homelessness, relied on food stamps, and raised my child as a single mom,” she said.  

She hit out at an 1851 remark by former secretary of the interior Alexander H H Stuart, that it was his goal to "'civilize or exterminate' us.”

"I'm a living testament to the failure of that horrific ideology. I also stand on the shoulders of my ancestors and all the people who have sacrificed so that I can be here," Ms Haaland said.

Her role is to address the challenges of climate change and environmental injustice as interior secretary, she said.  

The Interior Department is responsible, among other things, for handling permits for energy companies seeking to frack, mine, or otherwise search for resources on public land, processes that often harm the surrounding environment. 

As interior secretary, Ms Haaland would be responsible for managing more than 109 million square acres of public land, protection of animals and overseeing the National Parks Service (NPS) and its 422 sites.

She said that Mr Biden and vice president-elect Kamala Harris know that “issues under interior's jurisdiction aren't simply about conservation — they're woven in with justice, good jobs, and closing the racial, wealth, and health gaps.”

“I’ll be fierce for all of us, for our planet, and all of our protected land,” she said.