Navajo Relief

Navajo-Hopi Nation COVID-19 Relief Drive & What You Can Do

Navajo-Hopi Relief Volunteers Readying A Shipment of Food & Supplies

April 9, 5pm Update on the Virus in Navajo Nation: 558 confirmed cases. This does NOT include confirmed cases in Hopi Nation.

Retake Our Democracy’s “Voices from Navajo and Hopi Nations” was published on Friday, April 3. The post outlines the huge spread of the coronavirus in Navajo and Hopi Nations and how during the H1N1 flu epidemic Native Americans suffered four times the mortality rate of all other ethnic groups combined. Retake supporters have already made over 150 donations to the Go Fund Me campaign, but we have to redouble our efforts if we want to help to prevent that from happening again. Please share a link to this page in your social media and encourage others to contribute.

Here is what you can do:

  • Read the article “Voices from Navajo and Hopi Nations”
  • Contribute to their Go Fund Me Campaign. To Donate: Click here.
  • Paste a link to “Voices from Navajo and Hopi Nations” in your Facebook or Twitter account and encourage your friends to support the relief effort.
  • When you post to Facebook, explain why you think support for the campaign is important and “tag” as many friends as you think might be willing to contribute and encourage them to do so. Think about friends from other parts of the nation and include them, as most progressive folks have a softness in their heart for indigenous people. This could be done in five minutes and could generate dozens of donations;
  • Encourage friends to share your post.
  • Listen to Retake Our Democracy on KSFR, 101.1 FM or streaming live at KSFR.org, on Saturday, April 11, 8:30 am – 9 am when I interview Janene Yazzie and Kim Smith, two of the leaders of the relief effort.

Some Specific Needs

In conversation with Janene and Kim, I was told of some very specific needs beyond donations of cash. For all but the trailer, you can send these supplies directly to the PO box for the Relief Campaign (address below) For the trailer, you will need to contact Retake to figure out logistics (see below) Some critical needs include:

  • A trailer that can be hooked up to a truck and loaned or donated…. the area under coronavirus siege is the size of W. Virginia and food and supply relief often travels hundreds of miles to get to remote areas. Having a trailer would save an immense amount of time and expense in delivering food and supplies. If this is something you would consider doing, let Retake know and we can figure out how to get the trailer to Gallup. Write to RetakeResponse@gmail.com. This is an absolutely critical need.
  • Masks….If you are one of those folks who has been sewing masks madly or if you are a part of a group that has been doing this, please consider shipping off a box to the address below.
  • Other supply needs include:
    • Tampons and other feminine hygiene products
    • Baby formula
    • Diapers

You can mail these items to P.O. Box 383, Shiprock, NM 87420.

Thank you for your efforts on behalf of Navajo and Hopi Nations.

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