Native American communities worry about long-term effects from shutdown
Native American communities worry about long-term effects from shutdown: https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/nativ.... Thanks for watching, subscribe for more videos: / @daviddolan2567 Charles Riley, a member of the Native American Pueblo of Acoma in New Mexico, did something he hasn’t done in over a month. He went back to work. As a federal employee at the Bureau of Indian Affairs, Riley was among the 800,000 federal workers who went without pay for weeks during the longest government shutdown in American history. He is also one of more than 240,000 American Indians who work for the government, according to census data. American Indian communities say they were more acutely impacted by the government shutdown because tribal members faced more limited health care services and programs like food distribution, schools, and even law enforcement were operating with barebones staff and minimal, if any, funding. Part of the agreement between sovereign tribal states and the federal government is that federal agencies provide services like education, infrastructure and food assistance, many of which were impacted during the shutdown. Riley contemplated dipping into his life insurance account just days before the shutdown ended. “It’s become more of a mental burden more than anything else,” he said. In an emotional interview with ABC News, he said his family worked hard, struggling financially to provide for their three children -- and now their lives were flipped upside down through no fault of their own. “It’s just really a shame for people who are public servants and want to do a good job for the people of the United States,” he said. Now, as some federal workers, including Riley, recover from the effects of the last government shutdown, they are also preparing for what could be another possible shutdown if Congress and President Trump do not reach a deal by Feb. 15. “There is fear, anxiousness, and anger of potentially having to deal with another shutdown and possibly having to go through the same emotional, mental and financial stresses all over again," he said. "It can be pretty demoralizing at times.” While the temporary deal to end the shutdown brought some relief, Riley is concerned about the long-term effects it will have on Native American communities. “We are just a forgotten people. Every year our tribal leaders have to go back and educate our members of Congress,” he said. Riley, a 20-year federal employee, has been through a few government shutdowns but due to its length, the recent stalemate is prompting serious concerns over the long-term effects for the Pueblo of Acoma, his Native American community. Indigenous communities rely heavily on federal funding, which have been promised to tribes based on treaties. On the reservation, schools, emergency services, child services, food and health care are often dependent on government funds. Brian Vallo, the governor of the Pueblo of Acoma, said the frequency and length of government shutdowns bring additional problems. “President Trump makes statements about how he will do anything he needs to access funding for a construction of a wall and if that meant that a #NativeAmerican, #communities, #worry, #about, #long, #term, #effects, #from, #shutdown #abcnews, #governmentshutdown, #Washington, #DonaldTrump, #NewMexico, #insurance, #politicsnews, #electionnews, #politicalnews, #politicalnewsarticles
