Nazia Knight, a bull rider from Arlington, Oregon, is aiming to become the first female rider in PBR. She spoke at her Ride to the Polls event in Kayenta on her October 15th. (photo courtesy Campbell Wilmot/ Cronkite News)
The Solidarity Trail Ride in Monument Valley was meant to promote Navajo voting. (photo courtesy Campbell Wilmot/ Cronkite News)
Solidarity Trail Ride panelists, from left, include political activist and “Yellowstone” cast member Piper Perabo. Nicole Kang stars as Poison Ivy in the “Batwoman” series. Nazia Knight is a bullfighter from Arlington, Oregon. and “Yellowstone” cast member Moe Brings Plenty. (photo courtesy Campbell Wilmot/ Cronkite News)
In 2019, Hector Gomez, Daniel Zepeda and Rogelio Diaz founded Connecting Compton in Compton, California to provide a place where people of all ages and cultures can ride together, belong and be proud. (photo courtesy Campbell Wilmot/ Cronkite News)
KAYENTA – Last Saturday morning, activists, advocates and actors rode their horses through the red rocks of Mount El Capitan in iconic Monument Valley.
The Solidarity Trail Ride was part of Ride to the Poles, a nationwide event organized by Protect the Sacred, a grassroots motivational organization for young Indigenous voters. The Oct. 15 event included a panel of speakers highlighting the importance of restoring Indigenous power in polls.
By lunchtime, dozens of riders from all over the country had arrived at the Kayenta Rodeo Grounds, surrounded by black mesas and vast expanses of desert. Dineh families gathered in the bleachers and green flags depicting riders on horses with the words “Reclaim Your Future” fluttered in the breeze.
‘Reclaim Your Future’ flags fly over the Kayenta Rodeo Grounds after a Solidarity Trail ride in Monument Valley. (photo courtesy Campbell Wilmot/ Cronkite News)
Protect the Sacred held a similar event for the primary election, but participants voted on skateboards instead of horses.
Moe Brings Plenty, a Lakota-born actor from South Dakota, said: “It’s about making allies. It’s about making many voices one big voice. And we’re way behind on that.”
Allie Redhorse Young founded Protect the Sacred ahead of the 2020 presidential election. She voted early, and she wanted other people on the Navajo reservation to do the same. Young rode her two horses to early voting stations, and on Election Day she rode again to vote with dozens of voters.
in a 2020 interview Harper’s BazaarYoung said she was inspired by her father.
“He told me that he doesn’t feel motivated to participate in this election (2020) because we are in turmoil as a country and he is frustrated with the divisions that plague our community. ‘But then he had a vision of our people riding horses to heal our country. I mentioned trail riding to get votes.”
Of the 400,000 people officially registered with Dine, only 70,000 were registered to vote in Arizona at the time of the August primary.
“We just recently had a primary,” said Nathaniel Brown, the Navajo Nation Council representative for Kayenta and two other communities. “Unfortunately, in the Navajo Nation, only about 13% of our registered voters turned out to vote, even though we are the largest tribe.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=/WamsMMX2Dts
He said a direct vote on booking would be difficult.
“Some people from the Navajo Mountains have to travel four hours each way to vote at the county or state level,” Brown said.
Navajo County has 39 vote centers, but Kayenta has only one. Mr Brown said mail-in ballots could be more complicated.
“Here in the Navajo countryside, which is an entire country, most of the time there is no physical address,” he said.
Therefore, Young took action to get young Dineh and their elders into the polls.
“Especially in the BIPOC community, it is a demonstration to say that we will not let that happen, even though various laws aimed at suppressing our votes have been passed over the past few years.” She said, “We’re still going to be strong. And by voting, we’re going to take it back.”
“Yellowstone” cast member Mo Brings Plenty talks about the importance of voting in the November 8 midterm elections. (photo courtesy Campbell Wilmot/ Cronkite News)
Young’s invited speakers included Rogelio Diaz, co-founder of Connecting Compton, a California nonprofit focused on community engagement with horses.
“At the end of the day, some of the rules that exist today are not working for us. I think you have to vote, we make a difference,” Diaz said.
Keiara Wade is a member of Compton Cowboysanother California community engagement organization with horses and education at the heart of its mission. She said the Ride to the Polls event helps break down social barriers.
“If you don’t feel important, your mind is closed. It’s as simple as that,” she said. “I don’t want to be stereotyped, so to speak, why does it matter? I don’t matter anyway.
Dayhenoa Yazie, who was named Miss Western Navajo on October 6, will take part in a solidarity trail ride to raise awareness among voters. (photo courtesy Campbell Wilmot/ Cronkite News)
But Wade said Navajo Nation voters deserve to be heard like anyone else. She said it’s all about meeting where people are.
“But when someone says, ‘Hey, I want to step into your world and get your attention and do what you love, but I also want to convey an important message. , so that they can understand: I am important and I am being heard.”
For Ride to the Polls attendee Joyceline Wero, the event was a reminder of her own family’s struggle for voting rights.
“My grandmother, I’m sure she and her ancestors fought and risked their lives just to hear their voices,” Wero said. All they have to do is register, sign and register to vote.”
Historically, Navajo voter turnout has been low, but voter turnout has soared in the past two presidential elections. Navajo and nearby Hopi Reservation voters cast nearly 20,000 more votes in 2020 than he did in 2016, according to election data.
Political activist and “Yellowstone” cast member Piper Perabo (left) and actor Nicole Kang discuss the influence of Indigenous voters in Arizona. (photo courtesy Campbell Wilmot/ Cronkite News)
New York voter engagement advocate actor Piper Perabo said during the event that the potential for voters in the largest tribal nations is too great to ignore.
“If the Navajo Nation were all voting, ONE! You can move some things… minimum wage, environmental measures, public schools, health care,” Perabo said. “It’s all decided at the state level. And the Navajo Nation is so big, if we vote together, we can make a lot of difference.
