Don't
close your doors until you clean up your mess
Bravo!
To Ms. Pauline Whitesinger in her continuous effort
to take a stance in her beliefs and values! An exemplary
woman continuing her crusade to remain on the land (Hopi
Partitioned Land) so precious and dear to her heart
that we learn by now is rich (plentiful) with natural
resources.
Land
so rich that it's taken the U.S. Federal and tribal
governmental entities to once again revisit just as
we've seen and read about from time and time again.
Today
we hear once again from Congress, namely Senator John
McCain, to bring closure to the relocation program that
reportedly has exhausted (exceeded) federal budgets
(Senator John McCain's Senate Bill of 2005).
How
long did it take for the government to finally understand
such a plan (if relocation was ever a plan) was going
to hurt the pursue ... yes, the costs exceeded whatever
dollars were appropriated (billions) through the years
relocation was enforced but on the other hand what about
of the cost family destruction?
Did
we place dollar amounts on the cost of human destruction?
Senator
McCain, hear from the people living on the land out
in HPL, not tribal council delegates who have no clue
what life is like out on the land nor a way of life
for the remaining families/elders suffering from year
to year. Human destruction specific to family breakup(s)
through depression, alcoholism, suicide, etc...will
never carry a price tag.
Ending
a forced resettlement because it's hurting the purse
is a quick fix, do it humanely, don't close your doors
until you've cleaned up your mess. This is not closure,
as wounds remain open.
Likewise,
recently an article on one of the local newspaper's
front page displaying a Black Mesa Mine key executive
presenting an $11 million dollar bonus check to President
Joe Shirley Jr. The smiles on these two individuals,
I couldn't resist chuckling as I read a statement by
Shirley "the money is the people's money."
If
you do your math, "the people's money" turns
out to be about $38 going to each Navajo individual.
Little do these two individuals realize - or do they?
- that the bonus check that they exchanged with smiling
faces is money coming as a result from the families
(individual, family and children) relocated from the
Black Mesa/Peabody Coal mining area.
My
suggestion (is) instead of using the $11 million dollars
as a political payout during this election year, the
reality is that there are elders like Ms. Whitesinger
who continue to live on the land out in HPL are in need.
My
challenge (is) go to the land, homes that were built
through an accommodation program lack basic essentials,
i.e., handicap ramps, septic systems, refrigerators
using natural gas and solar systems in dire need of
repairs/replacements. Merely basic needs we take for
granted outside HPL are essentials that must not be
ignored as human beings are at stake.
By
the way, Roman, where is your response to our letters?
Thank you.
Sarah J Woody
Tuba City, Arizona
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