美国国家公共电台 NPR People Of Coal-Rich Northern Cheyenne Torn Between Jobs And Sacred Culture

 

SCOTT SIMON, HOST:

What would you do if you had billions of dollars buried in your backyard? That's a question that's been debated on the Northern Cheyenne Reservation in Southeast Montana. The tribe sits on one of the richest coal deposits in the country, but despite high poverty rates, they have never mined it. With the Trump¹ administration pushing for new coal developments, some see an opportunity. NPR's Nathan Rott reports.

NATHAN ROTT, BYLINE²: It's hard to beat a cheap burger and Ernest Littlebird knows it.

ERNEST LITTLEBIRD: Come get a dollar burger. A good meal, you know? Something to put in the belly³ at least.

ROTT: Littlebird is set up on the side of a highway in Lame⁴ Deer, Montana, under the shade of some trees. This is his second year selling dollar burgers to get by.

LITTLEBIRD: I've been trying to get a job over here at the store, at the depot⁵. I put my applications in and nothing, you know? So you got to hustle⁶ somehow.

ROTT: Jobs are scarce here on Northern Cheyenne - coal is not. There's an estimated 23 billion tons of it under Littlebird's feet and beneath the surrounding pine-dotted prairie. And it's come under increased attention during the last few months. In a recent visit to a nearby coal mine, Vice⁷ President Mike Pence said the Trump administration was, quote, "absolutely determined⁸ to continue to expand the opportunities to develop American energy in an environmentally responsible way." Littlebird and others here on Northern Cheyenne would like to be a part of that expansion.

DIANA MCLEAN: We need the economic development. We need jobs for our people, so I am for that.

ROTT: Diana McLean lives down the road. She used to run the reservation's food bank and head start program, so she knows the socioeconomic situation here. The U.S. Census⁹ Bureau puts unemployment on Northern Cheyenne at about 24 percent. The Bureau of Indian Affairs and most people in Lame Deer say it's closer to 60. McLean says it's been that way for a long, long time.

MCLEAN: And it hasn't changed. It hasn't improved.

ROTT: And the decades-old question about what to do with the coal hasn't been answered, not for a lack of trying. Steve Small, the tribe's former economic development officer, says that coal companies have tried to woo the Northern Cheyenne for decades.

STEVE SMALL: Told us, we can make you rich. But we don't know how to take that. I mean, that's a scary word. We're going to make you rich. Wow, you know?

ROTT: There are a lot of reasons the coal has never been developed but Small says the main one is culture. The land here is considered sacred. People don't want to sacrifice it for money.

SMALL: You know, culture's really nice. And I love my culture, but it doesn't put food on the table.

ROTT: Small is sitting at a table. And as he speaks, a woman standing¹⁰ next to him shakes her head.

You disagree?

SMALL: She disagrees totally.

ROTT: Can I ask you why?

ALAINA BUFFALO¹¹ SPIRIT: Well...

ROTT: The woman's name is Alaina Buffalo Spirit, and she says she's concerned about air quality, water quality, the impact that mining would have on the land and the people.

BUFFALO SPIRIT: So it brings money in. Guess what? More drugs, more alcohol, human trafficking.

ROTT: What's more, she says...

BUFFALO SPIRIT: Coal is dead, and there's no economy for it.

ROTT: This last point is an important one because sure, from a regulatory standpoint, now is as good a time as any to start new coal development. From a market standpoint though, it makes less sense. Natural gas and renewable energies are the new favorites in America's energy market. Even coal supporters admit the challenge.

LEROY SPANG: They got to get a market for it.

ROTT: Leroy Spang is a former president of the Northern Cheyenne. He's also a former coal miner.

SPANG: I worked for 20 years on second shift from 4 to midnight.

ROTT: And no, he says, sitting beneath a pine tree outside his home, his raspy voice is not the result of his time in the mine. Spang tried hard to get coal development started when he was the tribe's president from 2008 to 2012 but the plans never came to fruition. And with the economic downturn in coal, he thinks the opportunity for now is lost.

The Northern Cheyenne's current president absolutely agrees. Jace Killsback pulls a seat over in a spacious¹² office at tribal¹³ headquarters. On the wall beside him, a print of a newspaper describing the Cheyenne's victory at General Custer's last stand.

JACE KILLSBACK: I have a cultural world view that is opposed to the destruction of our land.

ROTT: Killsback says his election was a mandate¹⁴ from the people here to ensure that coal mining does not happen. Earlier this year, he even sued the Trump administration for reversing an Obama-era policy that would have stopped new coal development around tribal lands. Killsback says the tribe should have been consulted. Consultation¹⁵ is a treaty right.

KILLSBACK: We have cultural resources that will be impacted by development here and off the reservation.

ROTT: The move did raise some eyebrows¹⁶ on the reservation, but Killsback is defiant¹⁷.

KILLSBACK: We are descendants of those who resisted.

ROTT: And he says they'll continue to resist. Nathan Rott, NPR News, Lame Deer, Montana.

1 trump   

n.王牌，法宝；v.打出王牌，吹喇叭

参考例句：

• He was never able to trump up the courage to have a showdown.他始终鼓不起勇气摊牌。
• The coach saved his star player for a trump card.教练保留他的明星选手，作为他的王牌。

2 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

3 belly   

n.肚子，腹部；(像肚子一样)鼓起的部分，膛

参考例句：

• The boss has a large belly.老板大腹便便。
• His eyes are bigger than his belly.他眼馋肚饱。

4 lame   

adj.跛的，(辩解、论据等)无说服力的

参考例句：

• The lame man needs a stick when he walks.那跛脚男子走路时需借助拐棍。
• I don't believe his story.It'sounds a bit lame.我不信他讲的那一套。他的话听起来有些靠不住。

5 depot   

n.仓库，储藏处；公共汽车站；火车站

参考例句：

• The depot is only a few blocks from here.公共汽车站离这儿只有几个街区。
• They leased the building as a depot.他们租用这栋大楼作仓库。

6 hustle   

v.推搡；竭力兜售或获取；催促；n.奔忙(碌)

参考例句：

• It seems that he enjoys the hustle and bustle of life in the big city.看起来他似乎很喜欢大城市的热闹繁忙的生活。
• I had to hustle through the crowded street.我不得不挤过拥挤的街道。

7 vice   

n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的

参考例句：

• He guarded himself against vice.他避免染上坏习惯。
• They are sunk in the depth of vice.他们堕入了罪恶的深渊。

8 determined   

adj.坚定的；有决心的

参考例句：

• I have determined on going to Tibet after graduation.我已决定毕业后去西藏。
• He determined to view the rooms behind the office.他决定查看一下办公室后面的房间。

9 census   

n.(官方的)人口调查，人口普查

参考例句：

• A census of population is taken every ten years.人口普查每10年进行一次。
• The census is taken one time every four years in our country.我国每四年一次人口普查。

10 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

11 buffalo   

n.(北美)野牛；(亚洲)水牛

参考例句：

• Asian buffalo isn't as wild as that of America's. 亚洲水牛比美洲水牛温顺些。
• The boots are made of buffalo hide. 这双靴子是由水牛皮制成的。

12 spacious   

adj.广阔的，宽敞的

参考例句：

• Our yard is spacious enough for a swimming pool.我们的院子很宽敞，足够建一座游泳池。
• The room is bright and spacious.这房间很豁亮。

13 tribal   

adj.部族的，种族的

参考例句：

• He became skilled in several tribal lingoes.他精通几种部族的语言。
• The country was torn apart by fierce tribal hostilities.那个国家被部落间的激烈冲突弄得四分五裂。

14 mandate   

n.托管地；命令，指示

参考例句：

• The President had a clear mandate to end the war.总统得到明确的授权结束那场战争。
• The General Election gave him no such mandate.大选并未授予他这种权力。

15 consultation   

n.咨询；商量；商议；会议

参考例句：

• The company has promised wide consultation on its expansion plans.该公司允诺就其扩展计划广泛征求意见。
• The scheme was developed in close consultation with the local community.该计划是在同当地社区密切磋商中逐渐形成的。

16 eyebrows   

眉毛( eyebrow的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Eyebrows stop sweat from coming down into the eyes. 眉毛挡住汗水使其不能流进眼睛。
• His eyebrows project noticeably. 他的眉毛特别突出。

17 defiant   

adj.无礼的，挑战的

参考例句：

• With a last defiant gesture,they sang a revolutionary song as they were led away to prison.他们被带走投入监狱时，仍以最后的反抗姿态唱起了一支革命歌曲。
• He assumed a defiant attitude toward his employer.他对雇主采取挑衅的态度。