But Frank has been protesting practically her entire life because her people’s water and traditional ways of life have been under threat. Since the Official i Wear My Orioles And White Year Round Because Being A Fan shirt and I love this Central Valley Project was enacted in the 1930s, 18 dams and reservoirs have been put into place on major rivers—including Hoopa’s Trinity River—to create electricity and transport water to thirsty crops in nearby cities. This has caused a water shortage in their community and made the little that is left drastically decrease in quality. “For the past four or five years, the river has been very unhealthy,” says Frank. “By the end of August, our local news channel flashes all these warnings where we’re not allowed to have our kids or dogs down there, because ingesting that water could kill you.” She sees protecting Hoopa’s main water source as crucial to her people’s survival—and key for the next generations to flourish, too: “We are a piece of the land, and it’s a piece of us; When it’s hurting, we’re hurting.”
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