A stinking corpse: US deceit and theft of Navajo water right

From the Atlantic Free Press, this commentary:

Today I received one of the most important documents that I’ve ever received as a journalist in Indian country. It details the loss of Navajo water rights, the role of non-Indian attorneys and how uninformed non-Indian journalists come to Indian country and follow the mandates of those they believe to be the “good guys.” Too often, the “good guys” are actually driven by politics and personal motives.

The document is “Navajo Water Rights: Truths and Betrayals,” written in response to an article published in High Country News and Navajo Times, written by Matt Jenkins.

Among the authors of “Navajo Water Rights: Truths and Betrayals,” is Former Navajo Chairman Peter MacDonald.Many years ago, in the 1990s, I was a stringer for Associated Press and covered federal courts. During the federal trial of Former Navajo Chairman Peter MacDonald, I realized that the US government would stop at nothing to remove him from office and put him in prison. “Why?” I asked a Navajo businessman, during a court recess in Prescott, Arizona. “Was it about oil and gas, or coal?” No, the Navajo businessman said. “It is about the water.”

Now, a decade and a half later, I read and understand the importance of Navajo water to the United States, in this document. Navajo water and the electric power made with it, light up the Southwest cities. While the people of the Southwest light up, water their lawns and golf courses and turn on their water faucets, many Navajos haul their water and read by lantern light.

Read more from the Atlantic Free Press by clicking here.

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