Native Americans Work to Keep Sheep Herding Tradition as Climate Changes

Native Americans Work to Keep Sheep Herding Tradition as Climate Changes

随着气候变化，美国土著人努力保持牧羊传统

【原文听力】

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　　By Dan Friedell

　　05 November 2023

　　Members of the Native American Navajo tribe in Arizona have been raising sheep for over 500 years.

　　The Navajo started working with sheep when Spanish colonists brought the animals to North America. They raised them for meat to eat and wool to keep warm. And it helped turn the Southwest into a center of economic activity.

　　But that way of life is in danger of ending.

　　Navajo people are raising fewer sheep for several reasons: it is harder to get a permit to do so, younger people are not interested in being shepherds and climate change is making it harder to get food and water for the sheep.

　　In past years, Navajo families in the large western states of Utah, Arizona and New Mexico raised hundreds of sheep. The sheep were of the well-known Churro breed. Now, many families are only raising only a few. Some have completely given up.

　　Amy Begaye is 25. She has been working with sheep since she was a girl. At first, her family gave her small jobs when it was time to butcher the sheep. She collected their blood in a container and held their legs. But now, she competes in butchering competitions.

　　At a recent competition called the Miss Navajo Nation pageant, she had to cut the sheep into parts in a limited amount of time.

　　She said she respects the work of butchers.

　　"We butcher the sheep because it is a way of our life," said Begaye, who won the competition. "That's how my ancestors were able to provide food for their families."

　　There is another Navajo family called the Begays, and they work with sheep.

　　On most days, Jay Begay, Sr. takes the sheep out to graze near the community of Rocky Ridge, Arizona. He uses a walking stick for support and takes dogs along to keep the sheep moving in the right direction. The family had about 200 sheep in the past but have since reduced their numbers to 50.

　　His son, Jay Begay, Jr. said a friend told him, "You can't blame people for not wanting to work this hard." Begay added that it is harder now because of climate change.

　　A long stretch of dry weather called a drought has reduced the number of sheep. The Navajo Department of Agriculture said there were about 200,000 sheep in 2017. The next count is in 2024 and they expect the number to be lower.

　　Water is hard to find and a recent Supreme Court decision said the U.S. government is not required to find water for the Navajo reservation.

　　Valentina Clisto is a past pageant winner, like Amy Begaye. She said when she visited other Navajo communities, the people complained about the lack of water. She said dry weather means the sheep cannot find grass to eat. Instead, those who raise the animals must pay for costly food.

　　Lester Craig remembers when his family had 600 sheep. His mother would sell their wool to buy school clothes.

　　Craig stopped raising sheep because his family lives on land polluted by a nearby uranium mine. An accident in 1979 made their water unusable. He now has to travel about 30 minutes to a filling station to get water for his family and the few animals they have left.

　　In addition to climate change, pollution and water problems, Navajo members say the U.S. government is restricting the number of animals that can live on the land. Some have to wait for years for grazing permits.

　　Meranda Laughter said her family had 300 sheep five years ago. They only have 10 now.

　　Although many worry about the future, Laughter is hopeful. She said more education and better land management can eliminate some of the recent problems. She added that the land just needs time to heal and recover.

　　"We just need to give the land time to breathe," she said.

　　I'm Dan Friedell.

　　Dan Friedell adapted this story for Learning English based on a report by the Associated Press.

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　　丹·弗里德尔

　　2023年11月5日

　　亚利桑那州印第安纳瓦霍部落的成员已经养羊超过500年了。

　　当西班牙殖民者将羊带到北美时，纳瓦霍人开始与羊打交道。他们饲养它们是为了吃肉和取暖。它帮助西南部变成了经济活动的中心。

　　但是这种生活方式正面临终结的危险。

　　纳瓦霍人饲养的羊越来越少，原因有几个:获得许可证越来越难，年轻人对养羊不感兴趣牧羊人气候变化使得羊群更难获得食物和水。

　　在过去的几年里，西部犹他州、亚利桑那州和新墨西哥州的纳瓦霍家庭饲养了数百只羊。这些羊是众所周知的油条类型。现在，许多家庭只养几只。有些已经完全放弃了。

　　艾米·贝加伊25岁。她从小就和羊一起工作。起初，她的家人在需要的时候给她一些小工作屠夫羊。她把他们的血收集在一个容器里，然后抓住他们的腿。但是现在，她参加屠宰比赛。

　　在最近一次名为纳瓦霍族小姐的比赛中盛会她必须在有限的时间内把羊切成几块。

　　她说她尊重屠夫的工作。

　　“我们宰羊，因为这是我们的一种生活方式，”赢得比赛的贝加伊说。“我的祖先就是这样为家人提供食物的。”

　　还有另一个纳瓦霍家庭叫做贝盖斯，他们和羊一起工作。

　　在大多数日子里，大杰伊·贝加伊会带着羊群去放牧亚利桑那州洛基里奇社区附近。他用一根拐杖作为支撑，并带着狗让羊群朝着正确的方向前进。这个家庭过去有大约200只羊，但现在已经减少到50只了。

　　他的儿子Jay Begay Jr .说，一个朋友告诉他，“你不能责怪人们不想这么努力地工作。”Begay补充说，由于气候变化，现在更难了。

　　被称为干旱的长时间干旱天气已经减少了绵羊的数量。纳瓦霍农业部表示，2017年大约有20万只羊。下一次统计是在2024年，他们预计这个数字会更低。

　　水很难找到，最高法院最近的一项裁决称，美国政府不需要为纳瓦霍人寻找水保留.

　　瓦伦蒂娜·克里斯托和艾米·贝加伊一样，是过去的选美冠军。她说，当她访问其他纳瓦霍社区时，人们抱怨缺水。她说干燥的天气意味着羊群找不到草吃。相反，那些饲养动物的人必须支付昂贵的食物。

　　莱斯特·克雷格还记得他家有600只羊的时候。他的母亲会卖掉羊毛去买校服。

　　克雷格停止养羊，因为他的家人住在被附近铀矿污染的土地上。1979年的一次事故使他们的水无法使用。他现在不得不走大约30分钟到一个加油站为他的家人和他们剩下的几只动物取水。

　　除了气候变化、污染和水资源问题之外，纳瓦霍部落成员表示，美国政府正在限制可以在这片土地上生活的动物数量。一些人必须等待数年才能获得放牧许可。

　　梅兰达笑称，她家5年前有300只羊。他们现在只有10个。

　　虽然许多人担心未来，但笑声充满希望。她说更多的教育和更好的土地管理可以消除最近的一些问题。她补充说，土地只是需要时间来愈合和恢复。

　　“我们只需要给土地喘息的时间，”她说。

　　我是丹·弗里德尔。

　　丹·弗里德尔根据美联社的一篇报道改编了这个学习英语的故事。

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　　这个故事中的词语

　　shepherd –n.饲养游荡和吃草的动物的人

　　breed –n.一种因为其父母而不同于其他同类的动物

　　butcher –adj. 从被杀作为食物的动物身上切肉的人

　　pageant –n. 一种人们执行任务或展示能力并由裁判打分的比赛

　　graze –v.一种喂养动物的方式，给它们提供野外的草或植物

　　reservation –n. 美国的一块土地，作为印第安人居住的地方