"Last year, the Irish people raised nearly $2 million dollars for the Navajo and
Hopi Nations so they could protect themselves from the pandemic. At the time,
the infection rate in the Navajo community -- 2,304 cases per 100,000 was the
highest in the country. It was a show of thanks to Native Americans for a $170
gift sent by the Choctaw to the Irish people at the height of the potato famine
in 1847. These last few weeks, as COVID set India aflame in a profound surge,
Navajo Nation continued the cycle of generosity forward by gathering PPE to send
to India via the Indian embassy in Washington, D.C. This may seem like a
feel-good story about pandemic generosity. And it is. But there is another
perspective..."
This thoughtful NPR piece surfaces the urgent need for strong social safety
nets, and for people in power to insist on global solidarity and health care
equity.
