WATCH: New Mexico Tribal Leaders Work to Slow Spread of Coronavirus Cases

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Flashing highway message boards along Interstate 25 in Albuquerque, New Mexico, urge people in both English and Spanish to stay home amid the coronavirus outbreak on Thursday, April 9, 2020.

Flashing highway message boards along Interstate 25 in Albuquerque, New Mexico, urge people in both English and Spanish to stay home amid the coronavirus outbreak on Thursday, April 9, 2020. (AP Photo/Susan Montoya Bryan)

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April 17, 2020

Tribal leaders across New Mexico are urging their citizens to respect and follow COVID-19 orders as they work with local, state and federal agencies on response efforts. Last week, state health officials reported clusters of the coronavirus in two small, tightknit Pueblo communities north of Albuquerque at San Felipe and Zia, while Zuni Pueblo near Gallup is addressing positive cases. Tribes are working to slow the spread as state, national and congressional leaders are raising concerns about devastating impacts COVID-19 has had on tribes across the country.

New Mexico PBS correspondent Antonia Gonzales talks with New Mexico’s Indian Affairs secretary and two tribal leaders about COVID-19 and the state’s Native communities.

This story is part of a collaboration with New Mexico PBS through FRONTLINE’s Local Journalism Initiative, which is funded by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.

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