Themes America the Beautiful? Blythe Roberson

The Whiteness of National Parks: A Critical Theme in America the Beautiful?

Thematic Claim: Parks as Products of White Supremacy

In America the Beautiful?, Blythe Roberson argues that the U.S. national park system is not a neutral preserve of natural wonder but a deeply racialized institution. The parks were established through the violent dispossession of Indigenous peoples, continue to be marketed primarily to white tourists, and still struggle to tell a complete, honest history. Roberson’s critique spans visitor demographics, the erasure of Indigenous narratives from park signage and tours, and the systemic economic and cultural barriers that keep nature access unequal. The memoir’s journey through dozens of parks becomes a reckoning with what it means for a white woman to participate in an institution built on genocide.

Tracing the Critique Across the Narrative

1. Theodore Roosevelt and the Legacy of Racism (Chapter 2)

In chapter 2, “Somewhat Complex Flesh Machine”, Roberson visits Theodore Roosevelt National Park and immediately begins to dismantle the heroic conservation narrative. She learns that Roosevelt—whose name graces parks and mountain carvings—supported eugenics, advocated for sterilization of poor people, and warned white women not to commit “race suicide” by having fewer children. Roberson’s response is pointed: “I wished he could see me, IUD firmly in place… going out west where the landscape was rugged and where I could reinvent myself as ‘a person who writes about how Teddy Roosevelt was a racist villain.’” This chapter establishes that the very founders of the park system held white-supremacist beliefs that shaped whose stories were told and whose land was taken. Roberson also notes the whiteness of park visitors she encounters, contrasted with the absence of people of color—a demographic pattern the park service itself has acknowledged. The chapter weaves personal reflection with systemic critique, using Roosevelt’s biography to expose the racial and gendered exclusions built into conservation history.

2. Wind Cave, Bison, and the Black Hills (Chapter 3)

The most sustained examination comes in chapter 3, “This One’s Hard”, as Roberson tours Wind Cave National Park. The park ranger tells the white-settler “discovery” story—Jesse Bingham stumbling upon the cave in 1881—but Roberson presses for the Lakota origin narrative. She later researches the government’s deliberate bison slaughter policy, which aimed to starve Plains Indians and force them onto reservations. The bison becomes a central symbol: nearly exterminated by federal policy to clear land for white settlers, yet now featured as a charismatic park animal. Roberson learns of the 1980 Supreme Court ruling that called the U.S. government’s seizure of the Black Hills “a more ripe and rank case of dishonorable dealings,” and that the Oceti Sakowin have refused a multi-billion-dollar settlement, insisting the land is not for sale. She calls for returning park lands to Native stewardship, arguing that this would not close parks but allow Indigenous people to manage them. The chapter demonstrates that the “pristine wilderness” myth is a lie; parks were created by removing people who had lived there for millennia.

3. Zion, Petroglyphs, and the Ranger’s Confession (Chapter 8)

In chapter 8, “Wedgie Test”, at Zion National Park, Roberson interacts with a ranger who agrees that park messaging about Indigenous people is incomplete. The park has stopped even telling visitors where petroglyphs are located because of vandalism. Roberson’s Junior Ranger badge assignment asks children why it’s important to protect petroglyphs; she writes a “jeremiad about settler colonialism and the US government’s history of white supremacy.” The ranger, a white man, affirms her critique, sharing that at his previous park the “genocidal white idiots” story made him uncomfortable. This encounter shows that even inside the park service, there is awareness of the whiteness of park history—but structural change is slow. The overcrowding at Zion, driven by social media, also highlights how parks have become commodified playgrounds for mostly white, middle-class tourists, a point Roberson had made earlier at Yellowstone.

4. Mount Rainier and Sacred Land (Chapter 10)

In chapter 10, “Heroic Nature Adventurer”, Roberson notes that the Indigenous peoples who lived around Mount Rainier considered the volcano sacred and refused to climb onto its glaciers. White settlers, in contrast, desired to “conquer” the peak. The distinction underscores how Euro-American attitudes toward nature—as resource to be exploited, photographed, and summited—contrast with Indigenous relationships of stewardship and reverence. Roberson’s own compulsion to photograph and post to Instagram reveals how social media perpetuates a performative, often exclusionary, outdoor culture.

Complexity and Contradiction

Roberson does not exempt herself from critique. She acknowledges that she is a white woman benefiting from the very system she condemns. In chapter 16, “Watching, Screaming”, she wrestles with the question: is visiting national parks morally indefensible? She decides that instead of staying home, the work is to “work toward returning control of the parks to Native Americans.” She also recognizes that her road trip itself—the borrowed Prius stepfather’s car, the ability to take two months off—is a privilege few can access. The book never offers easy answers. It balances love for the parks with clear-eyed anger at their origins. As Roberson writes: “Criticizing the failings of the United States is not anti-American; I’d say it’s patriotic.” This tension is central to the theme: the parks are beautiful and worth protecting, but their beauty is inseparable from a history of violence.

Symbol Connections

  • Junior Ranger Badge: Roberson collects these badges throughout her trip. They serve as a tool for learning, but also as a framework that can be subverted. At Zion, she uses the badge booklet to articulate a critique of settler colonialism, showing that even a children’s activity can be a vehicle for anti-racist education.
  • Bison: The animal represents both the ecological success of conservation and the genocide that made that conservation possible. Roberson traces the government’s deliberate slaughter of bison to starve Plains Indians, connecting past policy to present-day park landscapes.
  • Prius Stepfather’s Car: The hybrid car symbolizes the privilege of mobility and the middle-class leisure time required to visit parks. Roberson’s ability to drive across the country for two months is itself a product of economic and racial privilege—one she acknowledges while trying to use that privilege to expose systemic injustice.

Conclusion

The theme of whiteness runs through every chapter of America the Beautiful? Roberson insists that we cannot love the parks without reckoning with their racist history and present-day inequities. She offers no simple solution but points toward land return, Indigenous stewardship, and a more honest telling of history. Her memoir is a call to action for readers to see the parks as contested ground—and to imagine a future where nature access is truly just.

Study Questions

  1. How does Roberson use Theodore Roosevelt’s legacy to critique the whiteness of national parks?
    Roberson shows that Roosevelt, the iconic conservationist president, held racist and eugenicist views. His personal tragedy (mother and wife dying the same day) allowed him to go west and focus on conservation, but only because his sister raised his child—a gendered privilege he denied other women by opposing reproductive choice. She connects his individual bias to the systemic whiteness of parks founded during an era of white-supremacist policies.

  2. What does the bison symbolize in the context of Indigenous dispossession?
    The bison represents both the lifeblood of Plains Indian cultures and the government’s genocidal strategy of slaughtering them to starve Native people onto reservations. Roberson explains that by 1900 fewer than a thousand bison remained in the wild, and park literature rarely links this destruction to park creation.

  3. Why does Roberson challenge the “discovery” narrative at Wind Cave?
    The park presents Jesse Bingham as the first to enter the cave in 1881, but the Lakota knew about it long before. Roberson argues that calling this a “discovery” erases Indigenous knowledge and justifies land theft. She presses a ranger on whether the Lakota have sued for return of the cave, and later learns about ongoing legal battles.

  4. How does the Junior Ranger badge function as a site of critique?
    The badge program is a child-friendly activity, but Roberson uses it to write a “jeremiad” about settler colonialism. A ranger at Zion agrees with her critique, showing that even within the park service, employees recognize inadequate Indigenous representation. The badge becomes a tool to demand better historical education.

  5. What does Roberson conclude about whether visiting national parks is “morally indefensible”?
    She ultimately argues that rather than staying away, people should work to return park lands to Native stewardship. She acknowledges her own complicity as a white tourist but believes that collective action—like supporting the LANDBACK movement—can transform the parks into more just spaces.