VOA常速英语: Navajo Women Lead COVID-19 Fight

Across the desert landscape of two grey hills new mexico
穿越新墨西哥州两座灰色山丘的沙漠景观
a pickup truck brings food and firewood to a navajo family of seven
一辆小卡车把食物和柴火带给纳瓦霍人的一个七口之家。
whose father died of the covid 19 infection hours earlier.
这家人的父亲在19小时前死于冠状病毒。
Relief workers unload the provisions and leave them at the door for the now quarantined family.
救援人员卸下粮食，把它们留在门口，留给现在被隔离的家庭。
Were stepping up for the community members at a time that is so crucial.
在这个如此关键的时刻，我们正在加强对社区成员的支持。
Kim Smith heads up a volunteer group made up mostly of Navajo women
金·史密斯领导一个志愿者组织，主要由纳瓦霍妇女组成。
who are providing support to a growing number of families
她们正在为越来越多的家庭提供支持
quarantined in homes where a relative has died of covid 19.
这些家庭由于有亲戚死于冠状病毒正在接受隔离。
The disease caused by the coronavirus.
由冠状病毒引起的疾病。
As big as West Virginia the reservation is a food desert
这个保护区和西弗吉尼亚一样大，食物匮乏。
with only 13 small grocery stores and almost 50 percent unemployment.
只有13家小杂货店和近50%的失业率。
Its really important to get this food out especially for our elders
把这些食物拿出来真的很重要，特别是对我们的老年人来说
who are more at risk and could be immunocompromised.
他们有更多的风险并且可能受到免疫损害。
The pandemic has laid bare stark inequalities in health care housing and basic services
这一流行病暴露了纳瓦霍民族与新墨西哥州、犹他州和亚利桑那州之间
between the Navajo nation and the states of new Mexico Utah and Arizona.
卫生保健、住房和基本服务方面的严重不平等。
Its just shedding light on the disparities that have already existed
它只是揭示了已经存在的差距
and also the lack of federal funding
以及以满足健康需求方面联邦资金的缺乏。
to meet the demand of the health needs.
联邦资金的缺乏。
Cora Tso a Navajo woman who recently graduated from law school in Arizona lost her grandparents to Covid 19 in May.
科拉·索是一位刚从亚利桑那州法学院毕业的纳瓦霍女性，今年5月，她的祖父母由于疫情去世。
They started to feel sick and by the end of April they were really bad
他们开始感到不舒服，到4月底，他们真的病了。
and they were in the hospital for a couple of weeks.
他们在医院呆了几个星期。
My mom texted me and told me that my grandpa passed on
我妈妈给我发短信说我爷爷去世了
and then in the afternoon my grandma also passed on.
下午我奶奶也去世了。
So they passed on within hours of each other on the same day.
所以他们在同一天相隔了几个小时就去世了。
The last time that I talked to them they were really excited
上次我和他们谈话的时候他们真的很兴奋
and were looking forward to come to watch me graduate.
期待着来看我毕业典礼。
So says she believes her grandparents deaths came prematurely due to a lack of infrastructure on the reservation.
所以她说，她相信她的祖父母过早地去世了，因为在保留地缺乏基础设施。
One of the biggest things that we can do to help combat this virus
我们能做的最大的事情之一就是帮助对抗这种病毒
is to wash our hands and is to stay healthy and stay hydrated.
就是洗手，保持健康，不要缺水。
And for a lot of members on the navajo reservation the infrastructure difficulties really exacerbates the problem.
对于纳瓦霍保留地的许多成员来说，基础设施的困难确实加剧了这个问题。
Chris Beecher is a former chairman of the Navajo housing authority.
克里斯·比彻曾任纳瓦霍住房委员会主席。
He says covid 19 has exposed the chronic underfunding of the Navajo nation.
他说，冠状疫情暴露了纳瓦霍长期资金不足的问题。
The biggest issues we face are not new health disparities, economic disparities, employment educational.
我们面临的最大问题不是新的健康差距、经济差距、就业、教育问题。
All of them relate to chronic underfunding by the US government.
所有这些都与美国政府长期资金不足有关。
Having broadband connectivity across the Navajo nation would also be a huge boon to the economy he says.
他说，在纳瓦霍国家拥有宽带连接对经济也是一个巨大的好处。
And for education.
也是为了教育。
You can see that by not investing in indian country you put native American children at a disadvantage.
你可以看到，不投资于印度国家，你会使美国本土儿童处于不利地位。
What we need is continue sustained increasing funding for native american tribes
我们需要的是继续不断增加对美洲土著部落的资助。
in order to meet the needs and just to keep up.
为了满足需要，只是为了不落后。
Until then people who want to help will do what they can to alleviate suffering where they see it.
在那之前，那些想要帮助的人会尽他们所能来减轻他们所看到的痛苦。
Thats what were here for ultimately as young people to be able to sacrifice ourselves, sacrifice our wellbeing,
这就是我们作为年轻人来这里的最终目的是为了牺牲自己，牺牲我们的福祉，
So that more of our people dont get sick.
这样我们更多的人就不会生病了。
Julie Tabo VOA news
Julie Tabo 报道