Good morning, NUNAverse:

The U.S. Department of Agriculture will issue up to $307 million in grants and low-interest loans in an effort to modernize rural water infrastructure, officials announced Wednesday.

Officials made the announcement at a wastewater treatment center in the Ohkay Owingeh Pueblo, north of Santa Fe, where employees have worked to keep the aging plant running for its thousands of residents along the Rio Grande. The Pueblo will receive a $610,000 loan and a $1.6 million grant to improve its wastewater treatment plant, part of a $4 million investment in the state. Federal officials say it will allow the tribe to start extending service to over 1,000 residents who are disconnected by treating 33% more water each day.

In North Dakota, a new partnership between the state’s Department of Corrections and a grassroots organization led by formerly incarcerated Native peoples plans to transform the prison system. The partnership is aimed at reducing a staggering statistic: Native people in North Dakota are 4.7 times as likely to be incarcerated than their white counterparts, according to statistics from the North Dakota Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. Beginning in January 2022, North Dakota’s four prisons will undergo change ranging from reinventing solitary confinement cells into bright and open living quarters, training staff in cultural awareness and historic trauma, mentoring youth workshops led by formerly incarcerated people of color, and softening policy to allow inmates agency to perform basic human tasks, like turning off and on lights in their rooms and allowing visiting family into their rooms. 

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service said Tuesday it plans to propose reclassifying a rare Colorado River Basin fish called the razorback sucker from endangered to threatened status after a multiyear and multistate effort throughout the Southwestern U.S. to replenish its populations. A proposed formal relisting would classify the fish as no longer on the brink of extinction. But it would require continued management of the razorback’s survival in the Colorado River and several key tributaries.  It has been protected under Colorado and Utah law since the 1970s. Their adult numbers have since reached more than 50,000, thanks to the work of Fish and Wildlife and other federal and state agencies, tribes, hatcheries, dam operators, and landowners.

The remarkable playoff run for First Nations hockey star Cary Price and his Montréal Canadiens has come to an end. The defending champion Tampa Bay Lightning beat the Canadiens in Wednesday’s game 5 and captured the Stanley Cup. Tampa Bay won the series 4-1. Price, a veteran NHL goaltender and Ulkatcho First Nations member, led the team to its first Stanley Cup Final since the franchise won it all nearly 30 years ago. Montreal was the last team to clinch a playoff spot, with the worst record of the 16 qualifiers, and became the last team eliminated while making its deepest playoff run in 28 years.

Keep reading for a full news update.

Other:

Pueblo Receiving Funds, Part Of Rural Water Projects

AP News, Cedar Attanasio, July 8

The U.S. Department of Agriculture will issue up to $307 million in grants and low-interest loans in an effort to modernize rural water infrastructure, officials announced Wednesday.

Officials made the announcement at a wastewater treatment center in the Ohkay Owingeh Pueblo, north of Santa Fe, where employees have worked to keep the aging plant running for its thousands of residents along the Rio Grande. The announcement is part of a multistate push by President Joe Biden and his administration to gain more support for a $973 billion infrastructure package that includes more than a half-trillion dollars in new spending. The Pueblo will receive a $610,000 loan and a $1.6 million grant to improve its wastewater treatment plant, part of a $4 million investment in the state. Federal officials say it will allow the tribe to start extending service to over 1,000 residents who are disconnected by treating 33% more water each day.

‘More Respect And Dignity’: New Prison Reform Initiative Aims To Lower Indigenous Incarceration

Native News Online, Jenna Kunze, July 8

In North Dakota, a new partnership between the state’s Department of Corrections and a grassroots organization led by formerly incarcerated Native Americans plans to transform the prison system with one core principle: dignity. Beginning in January 2022, North Dakota’s four prisons will undergo change ranging from reinventing solitary confinement cells into bright and open living quarters, training staff in cultural awareness and historic trauma, mentoring youth workshops led by formerly incarcerated people of color, and softening policy to allow inmates agency to perform basic human tasks, like turning off and on lights in their rooms and allowing visiting family into their rooms. The partnership is aimed at reducing a staggering statistic: Native American in North Dakota are 4.7 times as likely to be incarcerated than their white counterparts, according to statistics from the North Dakota Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.

‘It’s Exhausting’: How Navajo Students Overcame The Pandemic School Year

The Guardian, Sunnie R Clahchischiligi, July 8

Thousands of schoolchildren on the Navajo Nation live without internet access, computers, cellular service or basics like electricity. When the pandemic hit, more than 23,398 Native American students in New Mexico lacked the high-speed internet and devices they needed for remote learning, the state’s public education department concluded. The true figure is significantly higher, since the agency’s calculation didn’t include the thousands of Indigenous students in Bureau of Indian Education schools, Albuquerque public schools and others. Students had to drive or be driven miles from home in search of a wifi connection and to sit in vehicles, for hours on end. Parked on land their ancestors fought for, they drew from their resilience.

Ending Food Insecurity In Native Communities Means Restoring Land Rights, Handing Back Control

Native News Online, Valarie Blue Bird Jernigan, July 8

For Indigenous people in the U.S., food is considered a sacred gift. Healthy and bountiful produce is received when we care for the land. Yet, with one in four Native Americans lacking reliable access to healthy foods and Indigenous peoples disproportionately affected by diet-related diseases, something clearly isn’t working as it should. As an expert on Indigenous health and food insecurity among Native populations, I argue that the high rate of food insecurity and poor dietary health of Native Americans can be traced to the events that disrupted Indigenous people’s relationship with the land: colonization and the widespread theft of territory by white settlers. Any attempt to improve access to sufficient, nutritious foods today needs to focus on Indigenous food sovereignty and land justice – giving control and land back to Native communities to enable them to grow culturally appropriate, healthy produce and become self-sufficient.

Cary Price’s Playoff Run Ends

Indian Country Today, July 8

The remarkable playoff run for First Nations hockey star Cary Price and his Montréal Canadiens has come to an end. The defending champion Tampa Bay Lightning beat the Canadiens in Wednesday’s game 5 and captured the Stanley Cup. Tampa Bay won the series 4-1. Price, a veteran NHL goaltender and Ulkatcho First Nations, led the team to its first Stanley Cup Final since the franchise won it all nearly 30 years ago. Montreal was the last team to clinch a playoff spot, with the worst record of the 16 qualifiers, and became the last team eliminated while making its deepest playoff run in 28 years.

Ojibwe Coach Centers The Phoenix Suns

Indian Country Today, Dalton Walker, July 8

Red Lake Nation’s Ben Strong has an integral part in the Phoenix Suns’ rise to the top of the NBA. Ben is in his second season as the team’s player development coach, meaning much of his time is spent on working to improve the skills of each player, which include all-stars Chris Paul and Devin Booker. But it’s perhaps its the Sun’s big man Deandre Ayton who is benefiting the most from Strong’s work ethic and expertise. Both are 6 feet, 11 inches tall and both have a soft touch around the basket. Ben was unsurprisingly unavailable to be reached for this story as the Suns inch closer to a potential NBA title. In short, he’s been busy. The Suns ended their 10-year playoff drought after capturing the league’s second-best record.

US Proposes Removing Colorado River Fish’s Endangered Status

AP News, James Anderson, July 8

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service said Tuesday it plans to propose reclassifying a rare Colorado River Basin fish called the razorback sucker from endangered to threatened status after a multiyear and multistate effort throughout the Southwestern U.S. to replenish its populations. A proposed formal relisting would classify the fish as no longer on the brink of extinction. But it would require continued management of the razorback’s survival in the Colorado River and several key tributaries.  It has been protected under Colorado and Utah law since the 1970s. Their adult numbers have since reached more than 50,000, thanks to the work of Fish and Wildlife and other federal and state agencies, Native American tribes, hatcheries, dam operators and landowners.