VOA常速英语:纳瓦霍民族面临困境

Where Utah meets Arizona sits Monument Valley,its iconic sandstone formations make it the crown jewel of the Navajo Nation reservation,the biggest Native American territory in the United States.But lately the park has been empty and it's access forbidden.During this time every season, there would be thousands and thousands of visitors per day.But because of the pandemic, all our scenic destinations are closed.Locals suffering from a lack of income are lining up at the parks entrance,eager to pick up donations of water, food and cleaning products.It's really helpful for the families, especially us who don't have money, and don't have a job right now.Jonathan Nez says it took too long for the US government to send federal funds.

The cares act was intended to give relief to all US citizens throughout the country,but the first citizens of this country of this land didn't get immediate attention.The Navajo nation has been hit hard by the Covid-19 pandemic,suffering the highest case rate in the country.For the past two months, the number of confirmed infections has continued to grow.But in this small Health Center, only one doctor is on duty.Doctor Key carries out his consultations in a parking lot.Hello, Dolly.Hello.How are you doing today?Dolly Crank tested positive for the coronavirus.Well, I called this morning earlier, that I wasn't feeling good, that my coughing starting to get worse, with my breathing shortness of breath.We... we do seem to have a population that is very susceptible because of the diabetes, heart disease, obesity, and the fact that in the homes, there's very little space and a lot of people living in small spaces.In this sovereign territory the size of Ireland, at least 30 percent of residents do not have running water.Many families depend on public water stations like this one.Amanda Larson and her three children fill up a dozen big bottles.We come every couple days.Every three days we come and we refill the all of these and this is all the jugs we have.Yeah, daily routine in and out.Larson must ration water to cook wash clothes and bathe her children.I would have my kids wash at least every two days.But now that this pandemic is here, they're washing basically every day.