Latest news with #DinéBizaad
Yahoo
28-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Navajo, San Juan County leaders extend accord bolstering voting access
San Juan County and Navajo Nation leaders have agreed to extend an agreement meant to help assure voting access for Navajo residents. The agreement, stemming from a 2016 lawsuit filed by the Navajo Nation Human Rights Commission against the county, extends a prior accord that expired after the November 2024 general elections. Notably, the accord calls for creation of three language-assistance locations and polling places within Navajo Nation land in San Juan County, pre-election advertising in the Navajo language, Diné Bizaad, and employment of Navajo interpreters to aid in the election outreach. 'This settlement affirms a fundamental truth — the voices of Navajo voters in San Juan County matter. We are dedicated to making sure the ballot box remains open and accessible to Navajo language speakers today, tomorrow and every day after that,' said Abby Cook, an attorney for the American Civil Liberties Union of Utah, which helped represent the Navajo Nation. The Navajo Nation is spread across southeastern Utah, northeastern Arizona and northwestern New Mexico, but the settlement agreement applies to the Utah portion of the reservation. According to 2024 U.S. Census Bureau estimates, 46.5% of the county's 14,601 residents are American Indians or Alaska Natives. The original 2016 lawsuit stemmed from the move in Utah in 2014 to mail-in balloting and concerns the change disenfranchised Navajo voters, in part due to unreliable postal service in Navajo Nation territory. The first settlement agreement resolving the dispute was executed in 2018, the second was finalized in 2021, and the new one, extending the varied provisions through the 2028 general election cycle, was inked last week. The San Juan County Clerk's Office is the main county party in the matter. The new accord, filed in U.S. District Court in Utah, says the goal of those involved is 'to continue to achieve, if possible, a larger turnout by Navajo voters in future elections.' The language assistance, it reads, has 'produced some noteworthy results,' including turnout by voters on the Navajo reservation of 89.07%, which compared to overall Utah voter turnout that year of 90.09%. Per the agreement, voting information centers will be created in the run up to elections in Montezuma Creek, Navajo Mountain and Monument Valley. 'Each center will be staffed with a trained Navajo language interpreter, offering services including voter registration, ballot replacement, and language assistance,' reads an ACLU press release. Additionally, election information will be provided in Diné Bizaad, on local radio stations and newspapers. 'All eligible voters have a right to full and equal voting access without barriers, including the right to read and understand their ballot and voting resources,' said Aaron Welcher, spokesman for the ACLU of Utah.
Yahoo
09-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Afternoon Briefing: Hotly contested Dexter Reed settlement set for vote
Good afternoon, Chicago. A tourist couple hit by a car fleeing Chicago police downtown and left with devastating injuries may soon win a $32 million lawsuit settlement from the city. Aldermen are set to vote on the deal recommended by Mayor Brandon Johnson's Law Department Friday, according to the City Council Finance Committee agenda. They will also vote on a previously stalled and hotly contested $1.25 million settlement for the family of Dexter Reed, the man shot and killed by officers in a gunfight that followed a plainclothes police traffic stop last year. Here's what else is happening today. And remember, for the latest breaking news in Chicago, visit and sign up to get our alerts on all your devices. Subscribe to more newsletters | Asking Eric | Horoscopes | Puzzles & Games | Today in History The co-founder of red-light camera company SafeSpeed LLC testified in a federal courtroom today that his company routinely sought to influence elected officials with campaign cash, dinners and cigars to secure more business. Read more here. More top news stories: Northwestern University's federal funding freeze: What we know so far Bridgeview hijacking, crash suspect Miguel Alvarado dies in Cook County Jail Investors have been desperate for Trump to ease up on his tariffs, which economists say could cause a global recession and increase inflation. Read more here. More top business stories: Asian supermarket customers brace for price hikes as President Donald Trump tariffs take effect Elon Musk-Tesla backlash opening doors for EV startups like Rivian There's a lot of ground for Caleb Williams and Ben Johnson to cover between now and Week 1 in September, and that process started this week during Phase 1 of the offseason program in Lake Forest. Read more here. More top sports stories: Justin Steele goes on 15-day IL with left elbow tendinitis as Chicago Cubs 'take the conservative route' Rory Spears, a longtime Chicago sports radio presence with a passion for golf, dies at 65 'Native Pop!' opened on March 20 at the Newberry and features everything from 'Star Wars' clips in the Navajo language Diné Bizaad to three video games by Native creators loaded onto an arcade machine specially designed for the exhibit. Read more here. More top Eat. Watch. Do. stories: Chicago Shakes 2025-26 season: Billie Jean King play and 'Brokeback Mountain' musical 'Your Friends & Neighbors' review: What if Don Draper had stayed in the suburbs after his divorce? Facing a global market meltdown, Trump abruptly backed down on his tariffs on most nations for 90 days, but raised his tax rate on Chinese imports to 125%. Read more here. More top stories from around the world: Republicans are going public with their growing worries about President Donald Trump's tariffs US restores urgent food aid but not in Afghanistan and Yemen, where millions need it
