Former park ranger hands out activist flyers at iconic U.S. national parks

Ex-National Park Service employee Melissa Dalley has been touring major parks such as Grand Teton, Yellowstone and Glacier to distribute unofficial materials and promote a “Junior Resistance Ranger” program.

Melissa Dalley, who resigned from the National Park Service in April, has been traveling to renowned sites like Grand Teton, Yellowstone and Glacier National Parks to hand out unofficial literature and recruit children for a “Junior Resistance Ranger” initiative. At Grand Teton’s Craig Thomas Discovery and Visitor Center she highlighted the former location of a Native American massacre exhibit that had been taken down.

Dalley is a co-founder of America433+ and collaborates with the Resistance Rangers, a collective of former and off-duty park employees. Online commentators have condemned her actions as political propaganda and alleged harassment of tourists. She contends that recent federal directives, notably Secretarial Order 3431, limit the presentation of controversial historical content, creating a “chilling effect” on park educators.

Dalley acknowledges that while flyer distribution is generally allowed, organized events may violate park regulations. She continues to urge visitors to spread her message about what she sees as incomplete storytelling in the parks.