Native American Identity

To summarize this article in my opinion it talked pretty much about the basics on what native americans are today and how the past shaped them. I can agree with many of these examples but they are also very important facts because without someone pointing them out we may become blind to them and forget about our culture and who we are. It is important to think about these things and also give lots of credit to who found it cause many people don’t really think about it but we are turning more to the white man’s ways while we forget about our own culture. Also gotta give credit to our ancestors to sign some of those treaties even though some may have been bad deals, I’m pretty sure that some treaties were good and benefited our people around the world. Almost every tribe's culture has changed in many ways and it is its own job to protect it and keep our culture alive. You have to identify who you are and what is best for both you and your culture.

Horse, Perry G. “Native American Identity.” New Directions for Student Services, no. 109, © Wiley Periodicals, Inc, 2005. Pp. 61-68.

Sharing One Skin

To summarize the second article I can say right off the bat that it is talking about how the narrator really believes in her culture and how she thinks she has a purpose to be here. With the support of both of her parents and how they raised her to recognize who she is. Even reading that little passage before the story I see that the narrator did become pretty successful and still teaches her own culture while even being an activist to fight for indigenous rights. What she talks about during the passage is really to find who you are or in other words to open your eyes and notice what’s around you. I see this lady as very traditional and she knows what she is talking about.

Armstrong, Jeanette. 1996 "Sharing One Skin: The Okanagan Community." Pp. 460-470 in Jerry Mander and Edward Goldsmith (eds.), The Case Against the Global Economy, San Francisco, CA: Sierra Club Books.

To'hajiilee Pipeline delayed by funding issues

The article I found was in the Albuquerque Journal and was titled “To’hajiilee pipeline delayed by funding issues”. The project should be expected to work by pumping water from Albuquerque to To’hajiilee, but small issues would delay the project. It would then cause the Albuquerque Bernalillo County Water Utility Authority to deliver emergency water 30 miles west to the community. The 7.5 mile line would cost the community of To’hajiilee around 8 million dollars. It would be smarter to replace everything then drill more holes in the ground for a water well. As the problem is looking to be fixed, the community is making the right choice by having this 7.5 mile line installed in the community.

This article relates to me because I have experienced these water problems all my life. The water can come out brown at times and can stink. Before I came back to school, this water project had actually started and is almost completed now. It relates to my SHP topic because a lot of community members always ask my grandpa why the water does not come out clean or why it stinks. Many homeowners may live in some really old houses so they choose to have their whole plumbing system in their home replaced. It may help just a little but the community must find a way to clean the water so that new homes that are being built will have clean water. Also in my community there is a guy who knows all about the water lines, his name is Mark Secatero and I have seen him following the water people and assisting them in this project with his own workers.

Davis, Theresa. "To'hajiilee pipeline delayed by funding issues." Albuquerque Journal (NM), sec. Abqnews Seeker, 8 Aug. 2021.

Navajo Hogan-Dine-Native Americans

The second article was by Dr. It was titled “Navajo Hogan-Dine- Native Americans' ' and was about the history of traditional Navajo hogans. Over many years of the Navajos existence the hogan has always been a sacred place because that is where many traditional ceremonies take place. There is a difference between a male hogan and a female one back in the days. The difference is the male one is amleer and used for more traditional ceremonies with sticks stacked together vertically compared to a woman’s hogan where it is much bigger with the sticks stacked horizontally. It is important for every hogan to have it’s doorway facing east as it is for sunlight to shine through the door and represents the circle of life. The east is the beginning and as you walk into the hogan you must always go clockwise, just like how the circle of life goes. I cannot forget to mention the fact that all over the Navajo Nation there still are many traditional hogans made from mud, focks, and wood still standing today.

To relate to this article I do still see my old traditional hogans still up in my community and it is nice to see everyone still respect and protect them. No one bothers or disrupts the peace of old hogans as I was told from many elders that it will affect you in a bad way, so you must not disrupt the peace and just let it be. You will also see a lot of more modern hogans where people may live in them or still doing their traditional ceremonies in them today. I am glad to say that my family does have its own hogan and I was lucky enough to see it built when I was younger. My stepdad pretty much built the whole hogan himself in the span of two weeks. I remember going to school in the morning only seeing the foundation (concrete) and coming back from school seeing the whole hogan framed. To this day we still take care of it and do many traditional doings using it. I feel that the hogan is a really sacred place and must be respected. I am glad to have a personal connection to a hogan and also seeing the old ones in my community.

Dr. Karen Carr is Associate Professor Emerita, et al. “Navajo Hogan - Dine - Native Americans.” Quatr.us Study Guides, 15 Sept. 2019, https://quatr.us/nativeamerican/navajo-houses-hogans.htm.

NHA Board Meeting 2019

The Navajo Housing Authority (NHA) video describes how they help many families with housing, even my parents when they were young. I have seen the NHA get bigger around the Navajo Nation and help many people with housing and repairs over the years. The main NHA office is located in Window Rock, Arizona and has many smaller offices around the Navajo Nation. They help low-income Navajo families with affordable housing, and many of these homes are built very nice with up to date quality materials being used so that they will last for a while. Many of the nice facilities all around the Navajo Nation are built by NHA and are built with quality standards so they will last for generations to come.

A couple of years ago, there was a housing area where the shingles were worn down and starting to fall off many homes, so the local NHA upgraded everyone’s roof to metal roofing so there would be less chance of water or wind damage. My stepdad has also worked for the NHA organization for many years and got many benefits from them. This may also sound odd, but on the radio station on the Navajo Nation ``KTNN”, I always hear this ad about NHA selling lightly used or sometimes new appliances or wood stoves for a discounted price to the Navajo people. This really helps and benefits many residents around the Navajo Nation without having them pay more at other stores outside the tribal lands.

NavajoHousing. “Navajo Housing Authority Regular Board Meeting - April 27, 2019.” YouTube, YouTube, 27 Apr. 2019, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3F1prEC0Vh8&t=6107s.

New Hospital Building to be Constructed in Ganado

An article I found on Indian Country Today titled “New Hospital Building to Be Constructed in Ganado” talked about how many of the people in that area of the Navajo Nation do not have enough resources to help their needs, so a new facility will be built for their needs. Many families out that way really have to travel quite a distance just for simple healthcare so this is a good decision that will benefit many Navajo families. Another thing is I am pretty sure that the Navajo Nation will let the Navajo Housing Authority (NHA) build the new facility, this is good so that it can keep the NHA working with new projects and no workers will be laid off. Also this new hospital will not just help people with their healthcare but will also create more jobs around the area that doesn’t have much.

“New Hospital Building to Be Constructed in Ganado ...” Navajo Nation Council, Navajo Nation Council, 4 Nov. 2021,

A Legacy of Waste: How 4 Navajo Housing Projects Broke Down

The next article was written in 2016 on azcentral and is titled “A Legacy of Waste: How 4 Navajo Housing Projects Broke Down”. These problems are still happening today and will still affect the Navajo Nation for the coming years. What happened was some housing projects had been mismanaged, never started, or left unfinished and now all those are coming back on the Navajo Nation with more problems to come. They were being built with US tax dollars and were around $53 million over three years.All that has gone to waste with the Navajo Nation just demolishing those projects which made them lose even more money. The NHA was penalized $13.5 million which puts them way behind for future projects for their people. Also now the Federal Government is trying to recover $96 million from the Navajo Nation and that is really bad for the future of our people. All because of the mismanaged projects and poor workmanship.

https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/arizona-investigations/2016/12/14/how-four-navajo-housing-projects-broke-down/94779554/

NHA Prefabricated Housing

On YouTube a video I found titled “NHA Prefabricated Housing” which was about a new program in the NHA which was where most of the housing walls and framing was made. I am pretty sure the facility is located in Window Rock and it also creates many more jobs for the people out there. Instead of taking all the material to all different places on our reservation they kind of make it easier and frome most of the walls then transport them to their desired location. It could create more jobs for technicians to make sure all the heavy machinery is working and making sure they are made of the best material.

Navajo Housing Authority, director. NHA Prefabricated Housing. Youtube, Navajo Housing Authority, 13 Mar. 2017, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q4ZCX6yWFAY.

200 Pascua Yaqui Families Getting New Homes

Written by Madison Thomas and published by Indian Country today the Pascua Yaqui tribe is getting 200 new affordable homes built. The Pascua Yaqui tribe is located near Tuscon, Arizona and there are around 1,100 families on a waitlist for those homes. Most families have been on the waiting list for around seven years with elderly and disabled people on a prioritized list. There are different types of homes being built that are made to fit single family homes and for building made to fit multiple families. The project took about 6 months to get the funding to start the projects, there was an estimated $18 million that was given from multiple investors and banks in the area. Despite the delays field engineer Alejandro Marquez said COVID was one on the biggest problems with delaying 50 homes that were supposed to be completed in March but will not be finished until the end of June. The affordable homes are meant to allow families to own a home and not be renting out an apartment which would be more expensive but less space to live in.

Thomas, Madison. “200 Pascua Yaqui Families Getting New Homes.” Indian Country Today, Indian Country Today, 9 Feb. 2022, https://indiancountrytoday.com/news/200-pascua-yaqui-families-getting-new-homes.

Chief Seattle Club opens 80 units of housing at ?ál?al

A national leader, the Chief Seattle Club built and opened 80 units of affordable housing at ?ál?al. The units were made to get homeless natives, veterans and low income families back on their feet to start something with their lives. The families that qualify make 50% the median income in the area plus those families who are homeless or are veterans in the area. 1% of Native Americans and Alaska Natives are represented in King County’s population but approximately 32% are in the homeless population. Not only does the units provide shelter but it also provides food, a safe place to live and practice their traditional doings. There are also many other traditional things that are provided such as the foods, singing, prayers, and to gather with other Native families. Many of the people who reside there say the place has really helped and changed them, some often quoting “It gives me a chance to dream again and believe in myself.

Pool, Press. “Chief Seattle Club Opens 80 Units of Housing at ?Ál?Al.” Indian Country Today, Indian Country Today, 25 Jan. 2022, https://indiancountrytoday.com/the-press-pool/chief-seattle-club-opens-80-units-of-housing-at-% C3%A1l-al.

Chinookan Plank Houses

The Chinookan people who lived in Lower Columbia which is located north of Portland had many plank houses which the traditional Chinookan people lived. The plank houses were roughly 15 feet wide and around 100 feet long, they were enough to fit those natives who were closely related to each other. These plank houses were built to withstand rain, strong winds, and the heat in the summer. To build the home almost every person had to contribute something to help build it quick so they will not be taken as prisoners from the Europeans. Even though they had their differences with the Europeans those who were on good terms would often trade good with each other and be pretty friendly. During the period when Chinooks abandoned their homes Europeans would travel through and when they would rest most would refuse to stay in the plank homes cause how traditional they looked inside and they thought they would get cursed from it.

Milo, Stefan. “Chinookan Plank Houses-Native American Domestic Architecture & Culture.” Youtube, 29 Sept. 2018, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q7eDko2YgzI.