Shocking moment must be answered

Adisturbing video of a park ranger using a stun gun on a Native man at Petroglyph National Monument in Albuquerque deserves the attention it is receiving, both from National Park Service officials and viewers around the world.

We don’t know what happened in the moments leading up to the video, which captures a ranger repeatedly shocking the man identified as Darrell House, who apparently had stepped off the trail. He told NBC News that he did so to maintain social distancing while on a hike Sunday. He was walking his dog with his sister.

Watching the repeated shocking of someone, lying on the ground, is infuriating. The actions of the park ranger need to be explained, with questions asked and answered about the park service’s policies on when and how to use a weapon. It appears an extreme overreaction — something we have seen too much from officers of the law this year.

Stepping off a trail and declining to give identification do not seem to be cause to tase a human being, especially given the dangers of electric shocks to the body. The ranger did so several times, the videos show.

What’s more, the incident points to ways that monuments and other public lands should be managed to be more welcoming to Indigenous people.

Petroglyph National Monument, remember, was established in part as protection for Native sacred sites.

House said on his Instagram account that he frequently visits the Petroglyph National Monument to pray.

Under the American Indian Religious Freedom Act, Native people have the right to access sacred sites to practice their religion. That might mean going off a trail, and if so, that needs to be understood by people who work at the park and by other people who use the place. How that will work in practice has to be better established.

It is ironic that in the weeks after Deb Haaland, a Native, was appointed to head the Department of Interior, House met with a stun gun while on a hike.

The agency oversees the National Park Service and several other entities. She has the opportunity to develop stronger protections for Native people who need to practice their religion. She also can direct reviews of how rangers are trained, ensuring that they learn de-escalation techniques over force.

House, who is Oneida and Navajo, received three citations — for interfering with agency functions, concealing his identity and being off trail, it has been reported.

The former U.S. Marine told NBC News, “I didn’t see a reason to give my identification. I don’t need to tell people why I’m coming there to pray and give things in honor to the land. I don’t need permission or consent.”

What House and other Native people need is understanding, access and respect. That clearly did not happen at Petroglyph National Monument.