Preserving land rights amid infrastructure challenges, struggles of families near Chaco Canyon
Special to the Times | Donovan Quintero
Marlene Pinto, left, and Sheila Wero, who both live within the 10-mile buffer zone of the Chaco Culture National Historical Park, speak about not having running water or electricity on Feb. 16.
By Donovan Quintero
Navajo Times
NAGEEZI, N.M. – The sun sets over the rugged terrain surrounding Chaco Culture National Historical Park, casting long shadows over the land where generations of Navajo families, like those of Sheila Wero and Marlene Pinto, have lived for centuries. But as the sky darkens, so does the reality of life in this isolated part of New Mexico.
Unlike most Americans who take running water and electricity for granted, Wero and Pinto have spent their lives hauling water and relying on solar power or generators for basic needs. Their hardship is compounded by government policies and conservation efforts that, they say, prioritize history over the living communities that have long called this place home.
Sheila Wero has lived in the area all her life. The land she stands on carries the footprints of her ancestors, and the stories of survival and perseverance are etched into every corner of the dry, dusty, mega-drought-impacted and overgrazed earth. Yet, as she reflects on the land’s changing fate, she struggles to understand why, after all these years, external forces now threaten their way of life.
“My grandparents lived here a long time ago,” Wero says. “And one thing I don’t understand is why now are they bothering this land? We don’t go to their land and say, ‘We want this, we want that.’ We just live day by day. But this land has been here forever. Why now? Why are they doing this to us?”
To read the full article, please see the Feb. 27, 2025, edition of the Navajo Times.
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