Luttes de pouvoir autour de l’espace américain : 1991 ou la nouvelle bataille des terres vierges

In 1991, President Bush is expected to send to Congress his recommandation for protecting areas in 11 Western states. At the heart of the conflict are 250 million acres of both multiple-use and unprotected lands, 25 million of which might be granted wilderness status. The battle for the wilderness pits preservation groups against a myriad of motorized-recreation and commercial interests. This growing conflict is a clash of cultures — rural Westerners against urban environmentalists — as well as a highly politicized debate. Whereas since 1964, the anti-wilderness bias of public opinion had been giving way to an appreciation of wilderness as a valuable resource, Reaganism has contributed to the revival of pioneer values, and signaled an intention to depart from wilderness preservation and restore the previous policies of economic development and recreational use. At stake is the legal status of Nature.Pouzoulet Catherine. Luttes de pouvoir autour de l’espace américain : 1991 ou la nouvelle bataille des terres vierges. In: Revue Française d'Etudes Américaines, N°48-49, Avril-juillet 1991. La terre américaine. pp. 209-219