Article by Casey Lee, Field Organizer

Serving the Native People

My journey in community organizing started in early 2020. I saw an ad on Facebook calling for campaign volunteers and organizers. I already had some experience helping family and several clan relatives who ran for office and I pitched in by hanging up signs and getting folks to vote. So, I knew I could do this job and it was great timing because at the height of the pandemic, my livelihood was gone. For the past 12 years I was a cook and ran a roadside food truck in Kayenta and would set up at all the bazaars and flea markets in the region.

All of this stopped when Covid-19 hit and it hit our communities hard.

The Navajo Nation was under a strict curfew and any violation resulted in a $1,000 fine. Grocery stores were only open 4 hours a day and the elderly and children were not allowed in the stores. One designated adult from each family could enter and do the shopping and even then shelves were sometimes bare. This also meant limited travel for the elderly with no water and no electricity, so our team went to work to collect donations of food, water, and PPE (personal protective equipment). We also delivered water and portable sinks so people could wash their hands.

The curfew continued until this summer and today the mask mandate on the Navajo Nation is still enforced. Thankfully the tribe has worked hard to get shots into the arms of community members and has had one of the highest vaccination rates in the country.

This organizing opportunity with the Navajo County Democrats-Northeast Arizona Native Democrats was my chance to get back into the community, helping anyway I could, and earn an income. Everyone needed help.

After we shifted gears from community aid back to campaign mode in the summer of 2020, we got out the vote despite this horrible pandemic and we won. We organized out of northern Navajo County, in my hometown of Kayenta, a town about 25 miles from Monument Valley, Our team registered voters, signed them up for the Permanent Early Vote List (PEVL), which the Republican controlled Arizona Legislature just added new restrictions to make that more difficult, and drove people to the polls. It was “people to people” organizing.

I like helping my community, especially when we can help both the elderly and families get together and vote. In the 2020 election, Biden won by fewer than 11,000 votes. That would not have happened without the Navajo vote, my community's vote.

Today, I continue to be a part of the team and we are still organizing to protect voting rights and get our community members informed about the Arizona redistricting process and encourage them to participate. Our goal remains unchanged, that is to be present and helpful in our communities year around and to get more people to vote.

*Registering to vote and petition signing in Kayenta, AZ, Navajo Nation.*

In fact over the summer my team grew. I was able to recruit some close friends to help me set up at our community flea market to register voters, sign petitions to protect voting rights, and help get folks involved in the redistricting process.. We also were able to set up weekly community clean ups and now we are planning firewood distribution for several elders as temperatures get colder. All of this takes teamwork and I’m grateful for Wade Johnson, Rodger Begay III, and other organizers on Hopi and White Mountain Apache lands.

One thing that inspires me is our elders, their knowledge, their teachings and because of this pandemic we’ve lost too many. It’s a mission of mine to make sure we take care of the elders we still have. It is a Navajo way of life that the generations look after each other. It is this generational care for each other that should continue to drive us and move the work forward.

You can help us continue serving our people. A donation today will keep organizers like me on the payroll, serving the people, and driving the next voter turnout success story.

DONATION LINK: https://secure.actblue.com/donate/navajoconativeorganizing

Checks may also be mailed to: Navajo County Democrats — Native Organizing Fund PO Box 144, Lakeside, AZ 85929 · (928) 224-8021‬

Ahé hee’ Thank you,

Casey Lee, Navajo Nation

Community Organizer

Navajo County Democrats

www.navajocountydemocrats.org

neaznativedemocrats.org (project of Navajo County Democrats)

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