New Mexico tribes prepare for the worse

ALBUQUERQUE – The coronavirus could be especially devastating to New Mexico’s Native American tribes, Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham said this week.

“In rural areas there are few grocery stores and long distances to travel to get to stores and health clinics,” Lujan Grisham said during a news conference. “We want the federal government to know we have challenges. I want every New Mexican to know that we will not forget you. We are partnering with the Navajo Nation and all sovereign nations to protect more New Mexicans.”

There are 23 tribes in New Mexico including 19 Pueblos, three Apache tribes and the Navajo Nation which is the largest tribe in the country spanning parts of New Mexico, Arizona and Utah.

Most of the Pueblo tribes are close to cities including Albuquerque and Santa Fe so they have access to groceries and health facilities, but parts of the Navajo Nation and some pueblos are remote and far from cities.

“Some New Mexico tribes could be wiped out by the coronavirus,” the governor said but later added that with this dire prediction she was trying to emphasize the need for help from the federal government to combat the virus in the state, especially for tribal communities.

She has directed all New Mexicans to wash their hands often and practice social distancing – staying six feet away from others to lessen the spread of the virus and she urged the Navajo Nation and all tribes to “have a conversation about social distancing.”

As of April 3, a total of 363 cases of the Corona Virus have been reported state-wide and five deaths. Lujan Grisham predicted that the numbers of people with the virus will increase in the coming months.

She issued orders barring gatherings of more than five people and closing non-essential businesses. Schools have been closed for the academic year and she urged all New Mexicans to stay home to stop the spread of the virus which can develop into COVID-19, a respiratory illness.

As of Sunday, April 5th there are 354 positive cases of the coronavirus reported on the Navajo Nation, an increase of 33 since Saturday, according to a press release from the Navajo Nation.

Jonathan Nez, President of the Navajo Nation, has issued a “stay at home” order with a daily curfew. Residents are required to stay at home between 8 p.m. and 5 a.m.

Navajo police Chief Phillip Francisco has set up check points on roadways to check work documents. If the resident is out on a non-essential trip, citations are issued with fines for individuals who violate the stay at home order.”

There are approximately 300,000 Navajos with 53 percent of them living on the reservation, Leslie said.

Tribal officials have been educating people about the virus emphasizing that people should stay 6 feet apart, wash their hands and stay home unless absolutely necessary, he added.

Tribal officials spread the word on social media such as Facebook and by radio, flyers, handouts, and pamphlets, Leslie said.

He added that most people are paying attention to the information.

”There has been a positive response. A few people feel the rules don’t apply to them, but from what I’ve seen most people stay six feet apart, and wash their hands,” he said.

Asked why he thought Governor Lujan Grisham said that the virus would affect Native Americans more than the general population, Leslie said “because of underlying health conditions such as the high poverty rate, high incidents of diabetes and the remoteness of some areas of the reservation. The response time for emergency vehicles is affected.”

Some people on the Navajo reservation live in remote areas with dirt roads and a lack of electricity and running water so refrigeration and hand washing can present problems.

Leslie does not think that Navajo elders are more affected by the virus than younger people. The youth are helping their older relatives.

“On the positive end, the virus is bringing families together,” he said. “Everyone is closer. They’re coming together to make it through this.”

Governor Lujan Grisham is planning to increase the numbers of hospital beds and supplies available for patients throughout the state and will increase the numbers of those tested. She has requested the US Department of Defense set up a field hospital in the state.  The New Mexico National Guard is already helping out in the state, she said.

In a statement issued by email the governor’s press officer, Nora Sackett said “The governor’s comment about the risk to tribes was part of her effort to convince the (US) President that tribal nations need vastly more assistance from the federal government in order to prevent the spread of CoVID-19 on those lands. Without being overly specific, tribal nations are generally very close-knit communities and like many communities in New Mexico they have elderly residents and those residents are at greater risk of the perils of COVID-19 if transmission is not checked, mitigated, slowed.

“It is not that there is any specific difference from tribes Vis a Vis the rest of the state, rather that the

Governor wanted to state it to emphasize that tribal communities were part of strategic planning by the federal government. They are sovereign nations with important government to government partnerships…. The state has already taken steps to assist tribes including working with the Navajo Nation and state National Guard to establish testing sites and resource sites where people can go for multiple needs to minimize their essential travel.”

Calls to the All Indian Pueblo Council of Governors which represents the 19 Pueblos were not immediately returned.

 

(Contact Katherine Saltzstein@salty223@aol.com)

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