Downsize Navajo Nation Council

Ya’at’eeh shi, Dine, may you all walk in Beauty!

I recently submitted my semester term cultural paper for my Navajo 101 class at Northern Arizona University and interestingly enough, I wrote a short story of my personal “Long Walk” about how life has been for me being a half-breed.

In my early beginnings living on my Kaibeto sheep camp, I never had to think in terms of being a “half-breed.”

I’d love to share my journey, but I am only allotted 200 words, which is difficult to say the least when one reaches the senior level in college where we are expected to write 20 or more pages.

Anyway, back to the focus of my response to blood quantum; an attempt of genocide to eradicate Indian Nations by the U.S. government to get land and to thin the blood into extinction.

When one talks of “blood quantum,” what are we talking about exactly—ethnicity, culturally, socialization, genealogy—DNA? Wow, now that’s opening up a big can of worms among the learned profession, let alone from some council delegate serving his own political interests!

Don’t we have more pressing issues in our government such as the high rate of unemployment, lack of scholarships for education, lack of social programs, and a top heavy council that needs to be reduced to just 12 to be more cost effective and efficient? I am impressed that Mr. Keeswood has interest in genealogy, but. . .

Do we have any warriors in our council delegation that can stand up to the Bureau of Indian Affairs, which is the U.S. government, and fight to change the federal laws and policies to regain control or our own destiny, called “Indian Self-Determination?” What impedes our

progress to become self-sufficient is not blood quantum, but it’s being afraid to stand up against the U.S. government to restore our lost water rights and economic rights so that we can irrigate our lands to feed our people and livestock; to build our economic infrastructure to bring in revenue; not by asking the government for more porridge like the orphaned boy,

Oliver, asking, “. . please, may I have some more. . .” only to sell our blood?

Times have become so desperate that some of us have resolve to selling our blood to local blood banks for a few dollars more to replace our blood with alcohol to inoculate the reality of hopelessness! How much more blood must we sell in order to have an effective government? Let’s face it shi Dine, this three-headed government isn’t working!

I must agree with one point Mr. Keeswood made, that the young people (19 year olds) are the majority of our current population according to 2000 U.S. Census. It is time for these sleeping warriors to get registered to become the majority of registered voters as Mr. Keeswood puts it.

It’s time to pass a referendum to downsize the already oversized council from 88 delegates to just 12 with an elected chairman and vice-chairman. That way there is a common consensus goal to better lead the Navajo Nation. No longer does the leader have to wait two years for a confirmation of an executive director. We will save over $2,000,000 in wasted salary each year. That money can go into more scholarships, not into the pockets of self-serving council delegates with brand new chidi and a brand new Justin ch’ah!

The council delegation election is in August. I challenge, no “I DARE” the majority of young warriors to stand up to the plate and register to vote, aadoo, we can come together in one referendum vote to downsize the council to just 12, change the current ineffective government and return to our traditional Dine Nachiid form of social-political form of government!

It’s our turn to get an education and run our government and to get rid of the “ole goats” of self-serving ineffective councilmen.

Just Do it! Hagoonee.

Peter June Corbell

NAU student

Flagstaff, Ariz

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