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Totem that symbolizes support for Bears Ears National Monument stops in Salt Lake City for tribal blessing

(Rick Egan | The Salt Lake Tribune) Mary Yazzie, a board member of Utah Diné Bikéyah, says a few words to the crowd before the blessing of the Bear Totem, at the Urban Indian Center of Salt Lake. Thursday, July 19, 2018.

Representatives of the Lummi Nation made a stop Wednesday evening at the Urban Indian Center of Salt Lake City, where they held a blessing of 9-foot tall and 3-foot wide bear totem on its way to the Bears Ears Summer Gathering. The totem, which weighs more than a ton, is believed to have have healing properties and is a gift from the Lummi people, of Washington state, to the Bears Ears Inter-Tribal Coalition. According to Utah Diné Bikéyah, the bear totem symbolizes support for the restoration of Bears Ears National Monument. It’s now on its way to the summer gathering, held July 2-22 at Bears Ears Meadow.