A few days ago, REI came out and apologized for supporting the nomination and subsequent appointment of Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum. Their reversal comes after Burgum's actions and statements about selling off public lands, using them for mineral and logging extraction, and his joint statement with the Housing and Urban Development Secretary on developing lands for the lie that is building more affordable housing.
Basically, they said, "Whoopsie! Our bad! We didn't know he was going to do this," even though all the evidence was in plain sight. I mean, the first sign should've been the new rules package Congress passed late last year, making it easier for the federal government to sell off public lands.
But who am I to judge the very apparent desire of this administration to do away with our public lands...
What's interesting about the apology is that it's alone. Where's the apology from everyone else who signed the letter in support of Burgum? I ask, where's every other group who supported Burgum's appointment? Most of all, where's the apology from our side of the industry that supported him. Where's the apology from SEMA?
Well, don't hold your breath for that, as a statement provided to RideApart states they still support Burgum's appointment, as well as the Trump Administration's efforts to do away with public lands.
After listening to REI's statement, which you can listen to above, I went looking for the original letter of support, as it was supposedly signed by a number of prominent groups. That's when I found out that SEMA also supported Burgum's appointment in no uncertain terms. SEMA, the Specialty Equipment Market Association, are the folks that look after the aftermarket industry both for cars, trucks, and increasingly in recent years, side-by-sides.
They supposedly lobby on behalf of folks everywhere to ensure we can modify our vehicles to our heart's content, including those who pray at the altar of off-roading.
"On behalf of the Outdoor Recreation Roundtable (ORR), we express our strong support for the nomination of Governor Doug Burgum to be the next Secretary of the Department of the Interior," begins the letter addressed to Utah's Mike Lee and New Mexico's Martin Heinrich, who sit on Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. It continues, "Governor Burgum’s history of support for outdoor recreation, the outdoor recreation economy, and the protection of public lands and waters makes his leadership critical for the Administration and the Department. Governor Burgum has shown a commitment to supporting outdoor recreation as an economic driver and a meaningful way to connect communities. As an avid outdoorsman who hunts, snowmobiles, sails, skis, rides horses, side by sides and more, we are hopeful that the Governor’s long-time admiration of Teddy Roosevelt, sophisticated understanding of business, and commitment to public-private partnerships will help support and grow the recreation economy, its adjacent sectors, and all who benefit from it in every corner of the country."
That "commitment to supporting outdoor recreation," however, hasn't been Burgum's priority.
Instead, the administration has called for the disposal of mass acreage of public lands. It's signed executive order after executive order stating its intentions to sell these lands off. Both the administration and Burgum himself have spread lies about how public lands could be used to mitigate the housing affordability crisis. And he's aligned himself with those who've used Project 2025 as a playbook, firing (or rather attempting to fire) the workforce that ensures we all have access to those public lands. Basically, he's betrayed that "commitment" since day freakin' one.
I asked SEMA whether or not it would retract its support or apologize to the off-roading community for said support. But the organization responded resoundly that it not only still supports Burgum's appointment, but the Trump Administration as well, even after every single very public attack on your public lands.
According to the statement provided by SEMA to RideApart, "SEMA continues to stand by our endorsement of Secretary Burgum in his role leading the Department of the Interior. We remain steadfast in our belief that the Trump Administration and Secretary Burgum are and will remain important allies in the effort to preserve and expand access to outdoor spaces and public lands for the nation’s millions of outdoor enthusiasts."
Frankly, I find this logic insane given the reality we occupy.
Every single action taken by the Department of the Interior, Congress, and the Presidency has signaled their disdain for public lands. The same public lands that we all use to off-road and from which SEMA's affiliated companies derive so much revenue from. Supporting the actions made by these officials will negatively impact their businesses, as you won't be able to go shred Johnson Valley. You won't be able to kit out your side-by-side with hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of accessories and aftermarket parts to go hunting. You won't have Moab. Or Glamis. Or countless other off-road trails. You won't be able to go off-road anywhere, as these folks want to privatize everything.
And I don't know if you've heard, but do you have enough money for 6 million acres of land? Because the going rate is fast becoming a billionaire-only endeavor. I'm not a billionaire. You're probably not a billionaire. And neither are the family-owned small businesses that make up SEMA's customer base.
The two biggest signatories of this letter supporting Burgum's appointment were SEMA and REI, but it was also signed by the Motorcycle Industry Council, the International Snowmobile Manufacturers Association, the Archery Trade Association, the Recreational Off-Highway Vehicle Association, and 26 other groups that represent those who utilize public lands for outdoor recreation. They all should retract their support for Burgum if they also support public lands and our rights as citizens to enjoy them.
But given that the off-road market has become so important to SEMA's continued existence, as well as public land usage, you'd think the group would retract its support at the very least. What's funny to me is that in the statement provided, SEMA's representatives pointed to a webpage on the group's site titled Motorized Recreational Access, and it's couched in language about how it advocates for public lands and public land motorized vehicle access.
Yet, if it truly wanted to support the community, it'd stand up to those involved with selling off our public lands. But based on its answer, that isn't likely to happen.
Public lands should remain public, and we need to put pressure on organizations like SEMA to do better. Just as REI's folks put on them. So if you're a part of SEMA, if you derive your revenue from the off-road space, if you love having access to millions of acres of public land trails, and public lands in general, you might want to get on the phone and give SEMA's office a ring.
Main switchboard number is: 909-610-2030. You can also email SEMA at: members@sema.org.
