COVID-19, commonly known as the Coronavirus, has disrupted day-to-day life for nearly everyone. From schools to travel, it has disrupted the way in which people accomplish some of their basic activities. The Navajo Nation sees this disruption perhaps more than anyone else.
The Navajo Nation, a Native American Tribal Nation between the American states of Arizona, Utah, and New Mexico, has struggled with the highest infection rate in the United States. Approximately 2,304 out of every 100,000 people in the Navajo Nation are infected, placing it above New York and New Jersey (the two hardest hit states) in terms of infection rate.
Due to this high infection rate and rate of spread, the Navajo Nation implemented some of the strictest stay at home orders of any place in the United States. In accordance with the most recent order issued on 19 May, the Navajo Nation has been enforcing nightly curfews from 20:00 to 5:00 and 57-hour-long curfews lasting from 20:00 on Friday to 5:00 on Monday during weekends. During these curfews, all businesses, including those deemed essential in other places (i.e. grocery stores, gas stations, etc.), must remain closed.
“Infections from the outside have always found their way here. It’s just infrastructure that hasn’t.”
These stringent orders may seem limiting, but unfortunately, they are necessary. The Navajo Nation is not only dealing with one of the worst incidences of community spread of COVID-19, but it is also facing challenges which make handling this crisis even more difficult.
Conditions like diabetes and heart disease, which remain prevalent on the Navajo Nation, have aggravated community spread. These conditions make one more likely to catch, exhibit symptoms, and spread COVID-19.
Furthermore, the Navajo Nation struggles with other social determinants of health. Social determinants of health, which include things like income, household air quality, number of residents per household, and access to medical services, are qualities which are not directly related to health (having more income does not automatically make you a healthier person) but which do nonetheless promote or depress one’s health.
The Navajo Nation lacks a lot of the basic infrastructure which other regions have taken for granted in their fight against COVID-19.
In her narrative “Coronavirus and the Navajo Nation”, Heather Kovich writes: “Outsiders seem surprised that the rural landscape hasn’t protected us. I don’t think the Navajo are surprised. From smallpox to H1N1 influenza, infections from the outside have always found their way here. It’s just infrastructure that hasn’t.”
She describes that: wireless communication is lacking, so most people communicate face-to-face. Lack of transportation infrastructure means that people often carpool or hitchhike to travel. People tend to live in large, extended families. All of these conditions encourage people to stay together in tight-knit groups, something which can be excellent for social development, but can be dire when attempting to prevent the spread of disease.
The Navajo Nation also has some of the smallest healthcare infrastructure in the nation. Roughly the size of the state of West Virginia, the Navajo Nation only has 6 hospitals and 13 grocery stores. Compare this with West Virginia’s 63 and 163. Navajo COVID-19 patients are often spread around hospitals in neighboring (and not so neighboring) cities such as Flagstaff, Phoenix, and Albuquerque due to a lack of infrastructure. This encourages travel around these cities, as well as separates families from their sick relatives.
Thus far, the Navajo Nation has been highly resourceful. It has leveraged strong community connections to detect spread and repurposed existing healthcare infrastructure to fit new needs. The Tuba City Regional Healthcare Center, created a drive through service which not only does COVID-19 testing, but also provides basic healthcare services like treating minor infections and administering routine injections in a safer, less resource-intensive setting.
Increasingly, the Navajo Nation will need to be even more resourceful. Like most American Indian Reservations, it has lost almost all of its primary source of revenue: tourism. Joe Kalt, a professor of American Indian Economic Development has described the loss of revenue from tourism as equal to or even greater than a country or city losing its tax revenue. This amplifies the problem of funding, which Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez has already lamented.
The Fight for Health
The Navajo Nation and Native Americans in general have had a long struggle with health. The United States Federal Government has frequently ignored or deliberately harmed Native American health.
Going back to 1846, evidence of neglect for Native American health is already apparent. Volume 8 of the Ely Samuel Parker Scrapbooks (found in the Newberry Library) contains an excerpt from a newspaper article demonstrating contempt for Native Americans with disease. The excerpt describes a young American Indian boy who was forced to be “educated” to be “civilized.” When offered medicine, he said, “‘I do not want it…. I can not be like [sic] white man…. My life can be nothing.”
This passage seems to demonstrate a disregard for personal health by Native Americans. However, it reflects the idea that disease is endemic to the Native American body. A different Native American later is cured of his disease, and becomes “civilized.”
This connection between indigeneity and disease goes further. In the 1923 Report on Indian Affairs, the author describes conditions in Native American schools. He writes: “the schools…have been, in many instances, the sources of disease.” The report compares this to the Native American which has become a “Christianized American,” who is more sanitary and healthful. This report highlights the attitude of the Native American being “unclean” and “infected.”
This attitude persists to the modern day. A man from Page, Arizona recently wrote on Facebook: “Danger Danger if you see these Navajo any Where call the police or shoot to kill these Navajo are 100% infected with the Coronavirus and needs to be stopped leathel Force is Athoizied. Page Arizona do not needed this spreading stop these people in any way or form. The Navajo police are not taking responsibility.” This racist and violent post highlights the contempt for Native Americans present today. Furthermore, it demonstrates the persistent attitude of the “Infected” Native American.
This attitude is not harmless. In Volume 2, Number 2 of the Akwesasne Notes, the article “Civilization Preys on South America Indians,” describes how this attitude has resulted in local governments deciding that American Indians are not “worth” treating, as they would just get sick again, anyways.
This harmful attitude serves to belittle and dehumanize the Native American. It contributes to the lack of healthcare infrastructure in native lands. If the Native American is only going to get sick again, why build a hospital which will not cure anyone? With this attitude, shouldn’t the Navajo Nation see these 6 hospitals as generous, not neglectful?
Obviously, this attitude is not correct. Unfortunately, The lack of healthcare infrastructure is only furthering it. This makes it even more difficult to end the connection between American Indians and disease. Instead, acknowledging this stigma can help to counter it. Doing so is key to help stop the spread of COVID-19 on the Navajo Nation.
Community Action
Can centuries of neglect and contempt for the Navajo Nation and the American Indian be solved in time to remedy the harms of COVID-19? No. The Navajo Nation would need a concerted effort of reparations and decolonization to eliminate these attitudes. Hopelessness is not the attitude we should have. In fact, the situation should be viewed as quite the opposite.
The Navajo Nation has leveraged its strong community networks to provision its limited resources. Mutual aid networks have sprung up around the Navajo Nation to help those at risk.
The Navajo Nation has been extremely resourceful in this time of crisis. The Navajo Nation is leveraging all of its resources. However, the centuries of neglect and abandonment still ring true for many on the Navajo Nation today.
If you want to support local, indigenous efforts, consider donating to the Navajo and Hopi Families COVID-19 Relief Fund.