Navajo

Dozens of demonstrators marched through downtown Flagstaff Sunday night, protesting colonization, fascism, and police in light of Arizona’s first official Indigenous Peoples Day. Wearing masks — some also wore military fatigues — participants also expressed opposition to Columbus Day, which remains a national holiday in the United States. 

The City of Flagstaff is hosting a virtual celebration today in honor of Indigenous Peoples' Day. Organizers of the event say it’s an opportunity for Native and non-Native people alike to understand the violent history of colonialism—and also envision a better future. KNAU’s Melissa Sevigny spoke with two Diné speakers at today’s event, Rose Toehe and Carmenlita Chief.

Students in the Flagstaff Unified School District are doing their coursework entirely online at least through October 9th because of the pandemic. KNAU’s Melissa Sevigny reports, that’s been a challenge for Native American students who live on reservations with unreliable or nonexistent Internet access.

A unique partnership is addressing a home heating crisis on the Navajo and Hopi Nations, by supplying hundreds of cords of firewood from forest restoration projects. KNAU’s Melissa Sevigny reports.

The coronavirus pandemic has been hard on everyone. But for Indigenous people and people of color, even simple precautions like washing your hands and wearing a mask are complicated by racism and longstanding disparities in access to resources. Sonja Smith is a cultural anthropology student at Northern Arizona University who recently wrote about racism and the pandemic in an online journal called The Conversation. Smith spoke with KNAU’s Melissa Sevigny about the deep divide between Arizona’s tribal nations and the bordering towns.