Smokey the Bear, a symbol I know and love, has a sordid past, detractors, and has gone rogue. Who knew?

HOW DID SMOKEY THE BEAR BEGIN?

Let’s start with the official (sanitized) government story of Smokey, found on his own website: https://smokeybear.com/.

• The USDA Forest Service, National Association of State Foresters, and the Ad Council hired an advertising firm to create his campaign in 1944.
• His phrase, Only YOU can Prevent Forest Fires was introduced in 1947.
• A real bear cub was rescued from a forest fire in 1950 and moved to the National Zoo in Washington, D.C. He is buried at the Smokey Bear Historical Park in Capitan, New Mexico. Check out this Hopalong Cassidy movie of Smokey Bear.
• An anthem was written about him in 1952. The song added “the” to his name, and it stuck. His correct name is Smokey Bear, not Smokey the Bear.
• He’s a celebrity, having worked with the likes of Bing Crosby, Roy Rogers, Betty White (pictured), Dolly Parton, Leonard Nimoy, Ray Charles, Joe Montana, and Brian Tyree Henry. The Beach Boys even quote Smokey Bear in their song “Drive-In.”
• Congress passed the Smokey Bear Act in 1952 and removed him from the public domain and under the control of the Secretary of Agriculture. You can be sued by the government for unauthorized use of Smokey’s name or character. And, of course, they sell licensed Smokey Bear merchandise.
• Smokey has his on Zip Code. You can write to him: Smokey Bear, Washington, D.C., 70252.
• In 2012, he spent 123 days on the International Space Station.
• He’s been in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade many times.
• You can find him on social media.

MURKY ORIGINS OF SMOKEY THE BEAR

According to the South Dakota Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources, the push to get Americans to combat wildfires began in 1942, when a Japanese submarine fired at an oil field near Santa Barbara, California, close to Los Padres National Forest. Fears arose that the enemy would use shelling to start more wildfires. (OK, let’s admit it. Our citizens were already responsible for lots of wildfires with no help from the Japanese. Nine out of ten wildfires are started by humans.)

Posters sprung up to assist the war effort, saying things like “Forest Fires Aid the Enemy,” and “Our Carelessness, Their Secret Weapon.” In 1944, Walt Disney’s Bambi was enlisted to help prevent fires.

By August, 1944, as the war was winding down, the Forest Service, Association of State Foresters, and the Wartime Advertising Council agreed to a bear wearing jeans and a hat. They wanted to keep the campaign going, but needed to drop the earlier posters designed to harness prejudice. One poster, for instance, depicted a scary Japanese soldier in the forest holding a match, with the slogan “Careless Matches Aid the Axis—Prevent Forest Fires.” Evil depictions of Adolf Hitler and Japanese Prime Minister Hideki Tojo standing in front of a raging forest fire with the slogan, “Our Carelessness, Their Secret Weapon,” were also used.

SMOKEY THE BEAR AND HIS ENEMIES

Apparently, Smokey’s insistence that all fires be stamped out has rubbed people the wrong way. Latino and Native Farmers, according to a 2006 ethnographic study of the northern New Mexico forests, dislike this approach because it criminalizes their longstanding use of fire to manage land. And, in fact, the idea that all fires should be eradicated has shifted with the recognition that suppression left us vulnerable to large, catastrophic fires. The Forest Service currently manages fire by suppressing those threatening people and communities and, when necessary, using prescribed burns for ecosystem health.

SMOKEY THE BEAR GOES ROGUE

Rogue Smokeys have been around for years.

• Smokey, appearing in posters in barracks in Viet Nam where troops were dropping Agent Orange, remarked, “Only you can prevent a forest.”
• A toking Smokey in the 1970s said, “They don’t call me Smokey for nothing.”
• Smokey toting a machine gun in the early 2010s, announced, “Only you can prevent terrorism.”

Today, both sides of the red/blue divide turn to Smokey for inspiration. “Only you can prevent Socialism” on the right and “Only you can prevent Fascism” on the left. Those who are furious at the attacks on the environmental quality and the budget cuts at our national parks (Alt National Park Service) have also adopted Smokey. His hat says “Resist,” and his cool shades reflect National Park scenes.

LAST THOUGHTS ON SMOKEY

Smokey’s job of warning us to stamp out all forest fires is outdated. His real value, however, lies in calling us to take the future into our own hands and fight for what we believe. Long live Smokey Bear!

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