Amanpour and Company

OUR NEXT GUEST HAS BEEN PERSONALLY AFFECTED BY THE CORONAVIRUS. PEGGY FLANAGAN IS MINNESOTA'S HE LIEUTENANT GOVERNOR. IN MARCH HER BROTHER DIED BECAUSE OF COVID-19. FLANAGAN IS THE SECOND NATIVE-AMERICAN WOMAN TO BE ELECTED TO STATEWIDE OFFICE IN THE UNITED STATES. SHE TALKS TO MICHEL MARTIN WITH HOW NATIVE-AMERICANS LIKE HISPANIC AND AFRICAN-AMERICAN COMMUNITIES ARE BEING DISPROPORTIONATELY HIT RIGHT NOW. >> THANK YOU FOR TALKING WITH US. WE'RE SO DELIGHTED TO HAVE YOU WITH US. >> THANK YOU SO MUCH. I APPRECIATE IT. >> I WANT TO OFFER THE CONDOLENCES OF EVERYONE HERE ON THE LOSS. YOUR BROTHER. THIS COMES JUST AFTER YOU LOST YOUR FATHER EARLIER THIS YEAR. I WANT TO OFFER CONDOLENCES. >> THANK YOU. I APPRECIATE THAT. THIS HAS CERTAIN IT WILL BEEN A DIFFICULT YEAR FOR OUR FAMILY. MY BROTHER, MY DAD WAS HOSPITALIZED AT THE END OF LAST YEAR. MY BROTHER DROVE UP NORTH AND STAYED BY HIS SIDE UNTIL HE WALKED ON. UNTIL HE WAS BURIED. AND THEN WENT BACK HOME. AND A FEW WEEKS LATER, STARTED FEELING SICK AND WENT TO THE DOCTOR AND HE WAS DIAGNOSED WITH CANCER. HE RECEIVED HIS FIRST TREATMENT. HE WENT HOME AND A FEW DAYS LATER, HE WAS ADMITTED TO THE HOSPITAL DUE TO DIFFICULTY BREATHING. A COUPLE DAYS LATER, HE WAS TESTED AND IT WAS CONFIRMED THAT HE HAD COVID. WE NEEDED TO PLACE HOW MANY A VENTILATOR AND PUT NAME MEDICALLY INDUCED COMA AND HE DID NOT SURVIVE. SO MY FAMILY, WE WILL HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO MEMORIALIZE HIM AND HIS ASHES WILL BE SPREAD NEXT TO MY DAD ON THE RESERVATION. AND WE WILL HAVE THAT OPPORTUNITY IN THE FUTURE. RIGHT NOW, MY BROTHER IS A MARINE AND HE WOULD HAVE. GIRL, GET BACK TO IT. THAT'S WHAT WE'RE DOING. SO MANY OTHER FAMILIES ARE TRYING TO MOVE THROUGH THEIR GRIEF RIGHT NOW. >> NDOLENCES ON THAT. SO LET US SPEAK ABOUT YOUR PUBLIC RESPONSIBILITY. TURE LIEUTENANT GOVERNOR OF MINNESOTA. YOU ARE THE SECOND NATIVE WOMAN TO BE ELECTED TO A STATEWIDE OFFICE IN THE COUNTRY. SO THERE ARE 11 NATIVE TRIBES IN MINNESOTA. I UNDERSTAND THAT YOUR CONCERN ABOUT TRIBAL MEMBERS REALLY SPEAKS TO TRIBAL MEMBERS ACROSS THE COUNTRY. ARE THERE SPECIFIC CONCERNS ABOUT TRIBAL MEMBERS THAT ARE PERHAPS DISTINCT OF EVERYONE DEALING WITH THE CURRENT SITUATION THAT YOU WANT TO HIGHLIGHT FOR US? >> SURE. I THINK ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT THINGS FOR PEOPLE TO KNOW, WE STILL EXIST. THERE IS AN ERASURE THAT HAPPENS. IT IS A NONPROFIT ORGANIZATION THAT CONDUCTED A STUDY WHERE THEY FOUND THAT 40% OF AMERICANS DON'T REALIZE THAT NATIVE-AMERICAN PEOPLE STILL EXIST. IF YOU DON'T EVEN KNOW WE'RE HERE, THEN THE ISSUES THAT CHILE OUR COMMUNITY, IT BECOMES EVEN MORE DIFFICULT. OUR HEALTH DISPARITY THAT OUR COMMUNITY DEALS WITH, HEART DISEASE, DIABETES, ASTHMA, AND THEN PUTS US EVEN MORE AT RISK FOR CONTRACTING COVID AND THEN DEVELOPING COMPLICATIONS FROM THAT. >> THIS IS FAR HIGHER THAN THE GENERAL POPULATION. CAN YOU SHARE A LITTLE ABOUT THAT? >> THAT'S RIGHT. WE ARE AT THE TOP OF MANY ON THE LIST OF WHAT YOU DON'T WANT TO BE. WHEN IT COMES TO ISSUES AROUND HEART DISEASE AND DIABETES, ANY KIND OF COMPLICATIONS, I THINK AS WE'RE TACKLING THESE THINGS, WE'RE ALSO NAVIGATING THROUGH HOUSING SHORTAGES AND ACCESS TO FOOD, ALL THE THINGS I THINK THAT SOME FOLKS TAKE FOR GRANTED. A LOT OF OUR TRIBAL COMMUNITIES ARE NOT OFTEN EASILY ACCESSIBLE. THE BIGGEST THING, AS WE'VE BEEN WORKING WITH OUR TRIBE IN MINNESOTA. JUST THE ACKNOWLEDGEMENT THAT OUR TRIBES DON'T HAVE A TAX BASE. SO MUCH OF THE REVENUE SOURCE FOR OUR TRIBE HAS GONE THROUGH GAMING. AND WE CERTAINLY, THE GOVERNOR AND I COULDN'T ISSUE AN ORDER ASKING TO CLOSE. BUT OUR TRIBAL LEADERS MADE THAT DECISION ON THEIR OWN AND FOLLOWED THE STATE STAY-AT-HOME ORDER. AND THAT PUTS THEM IN A REALLY DIFFICULT POSITION. SO ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE'VE ALSO DONE IS PUT TOGETHER AS WE'RE WORKING ON OUR RESPONSE IN PARTNERSHIP WITH THE TRIBE, WE'VE PUT TOGETHER A TRIBAL ASSISTED FUND THAT WE WERE ABLE TO MOVE THROUGH LEGISLATURE. THE $11 MILLION IN THAT TIME. TO GIVE INDIVIDUAL GRANTS TO TRIBAL NATIONS SO THEY HAVE SOME MONEY WHILE THEY'RE WAITING FOR THE ADDITIONAL SUPPORT TO COME IN. SO THEY CAN GET REIMBURSED BY FEMA AND OTHER THINGS. >> THE REALITY IS THAT MILLIONS OF TRIBAL MEMBERS GET THEIR HEALTH CARE THROUGH THE INDIAN HEALTH SERVICE WHICH WAS SET UP IN EXCHANGE FOR ACCESS TO TRIBAL LAND. WHAT IS YOUR UNDERSTANDING OF THE TESTING SITUATION? WE'RE HEARING FROM GOVERNORS ACROSS THE COUNTRY THAT THEY'RE COMPETING WITH EACH OTHER. IS THE INDIAN HEALTH SERVICE SIMILARLY HAVING TO COMPETE WITH OTHER ENTITIES FOR THESE THINGS? WHAT IS THE SITUATION? >> FIRST, I'M GLAD THAT YOU ACKNOWLEDGED, WE WERE GUARANTEED THAT TWO THINGS. EDUCATION AND HEALTH CARE IN EXCHANGE FOR ALL OF THIS. INDIANA YANDLE HEALTH SERVICE HAS NEVER BEEN ADEQUATELY FUNDED AND HAS NEVER MET THE HEALTH CARE NEEDS OF NATIVE PEOPLE. SO NOW WE HAVE THIS CRISIS ON TOP OF IT. IT IS SIMPLY ONLY EXACERBATING THE SHORTFALLS. WHEN IT COMES TO TESTING, THE INDIANA YANDLE HEALTH SERVICE IS COMPETING WITH THE STATES TO GET THE TESTING EQUIPMENT, THE PPE, AND WE FIND OURSELVES IN A SITUATION WHERE IT SURE WOULD BE HELPFUL IF THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT DID A BETTER JOBL COORDINATING THROUGHOUT THE STATE. ONE OF THE CHALLENGES WE'VE HAD IN MINNESOTA IS EVEN WHEN WE RECEIVED THESE TEST KITS AS A STATE, THE REAGENT NEEDED FOR THESE KITS, OR ADDITIONAL SWABS ARE NOT INCLUDED. IF YOU'RE SENDING OUT A KIT, YOU CAN'T USE IT UNLESS IT IS COMPLETE. SO WE'RE FOLLOWING ONE THE TRIBE IN OUR STATE TO FIND OUT IF THEY HAVE RECEIVED FULL KITS SO THEY CAN BEGIN TESTING. THE NEED HAND BEEN MET WHEN IT COMES TO TESTING FOR STATES. SPECIALLY FOR OUR NATIVE NATION ACROSS THE COUNTRY. >> THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT HAS PLEDGED AS PART OF RELIEF ACT, HAS PLEDGED MILLIONS OF DOLLARS TO THE TRIBAL NATION. THIS MONEY IS BEING SENT TO OTHER GROUPS AND INDIVIDUALS. HAS ANY OF. MONEY BEEN RECEIVED YET TO YOUR KNOWLEDGE? >> SOME OF IT HAS. I THINK THE LARGE AMOUNT OF IT, THE $8 BILLION THAT WAS ALLOCATED BY CONGRESS, THAT MONEY HAS NOT NOT BEEN DISTRIBUTED. AND THE ISSUE THERE IS THAT TREASURY HAS NEVER DIRECTLY GRANTED OR SENT MONEY TO TRIBES BEFORE. SO THEY'RE TRYING TO DETERMINE WHAT THE APPROPRIATE FORMULA IS FOR THE DISPERSION OF THOSE FUNDS. I'M WORRIED ABOUT HOW THAT FORMULA WILL BE DEVELOPED. THERE ARE 573 NATIVE NATIONS WITHIN THE BORDERS OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, AND FOR AN ENTITY THAT HAS NOT DONE THIS YET, I THINK WE ARE ALL PAYING CLOSE ATTENTION TO HOW THEY DETERMINE AS THEY'RE GOING THROUGH COMPLICATIONS, HOW THESE FUNDS WILL BE DISPERSED. WE ARE WEEKS AND WEEKS INTO THIS CRISIS AND I WORRY ABOUT THE ABILITY TO GET THAT MONEY OUT QUICKLY AND FOR FOLKS, FOR TRIBAL LEADERS TO BE ABLE TO MEET THAT NEED. I KNOW MANY FOLKS ARE PAYING CLOSE ATTENTION. >> YOU'RE SAYING THERE ARE 11 TRIBES IN MINNESOTA. AND YOU THE GOVERNMENT ARE ABLE TO PUT TOGETHER A PACKAGE WITHIN THE STATE. WHAT IS THE SITUATION? IS YOUR WORST CASE SCENARIO COMING TRUE THERE? >> SO SO FAR, AS WE DO DAILY CALLS WITH TRIBAL LEADERS ALONG WITH OUR CONGRESSIONAL PARTNERS. I THINK THAT'S BEEN REALLY IMPORTANT TO MAKE SURE THAT WE ARE COMMUNICATING EFFECTIVELY WITH WHAT THE NEEDS ARE. HOW TO BETTER COORDINATE WITH COUNTY HEALTH OFFICIALS. THAT TYPE OF THING. AND WE'RE REALLY, WE WERE ABLE TO IMPLEMENT THAT BECAUSE THE GOVERNOR AND I HAVE MADE SURE THAT OUR RELATIONSHIPS HAVE BEEN A REAL PRIORITY. BECAUSE OF THAT RELATIONSHIP BUILDING, WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO GET TO A BETTER SPOT WITH COORDINATION IN RESPONSE. NOW WE DO KNOW THAT THE NATION, FOR EXAMPLE, 600 OF THEIR TRIBAL MEMBERS ARE EXPERIENCING HOMELESSNESS. AND EVEN, THAT IS A REAL ISSUE AS WE'RE THINKING ABOUT HOW PEOPLE CAN DO SOCIAL DISTANCING, STAY AT HOME, LIMITED EXPOSURE SO WE'RE WORKING WITH THEM ON THAT ISSUE. BUT A LOT OF THEM, IN MINNESOTA, THEY HAVE THEIR UNIQUE SITUATIONS. AND WE'RE TRYING GET THEM IN THE SHORT TERM, TO MAKE THAT CONNECTION. TO BE ABLE TO RESPOND TO THEIR COMMUNITY. 50% OF NATIVE-AMERICANS DON'T LIVE ON RESERVATIONS. SO WE HAVE A PRETTY SIGNIFICANT URBAN POPULATION AS WELL. AND IN MINNESOTA, YOU ARE 27 TIMES MORE LIKELY TO BE UNSHELTERED IF YOU ARE, THAN THE WHITE POPULATION, IF YOU'RE NATIVE. SO THAT IS WHAT WE'RE DEALING WITH HERE WITH OUR COMMUNITY MEMBERS BEING HOMELESS. ON TOP OF MAKING SURE WE HAVE APPROPRIATE RESPONSES TO CITIES AND COUNTIES AND THROUGH THE STATE. THAT'S SOMETHING WE'RE WORKING ON NOW AS WELL. >> TELL ME WHAT THAT LOOKS LIKE AND HOW IT MIGHT BE DIFFERENT THAN FOR OTHER GROUPS. >> SO FOR FOLKS IN MINNESOTA, THE POPULATION THAT'S WE SEE EXPERIENCING HOMELESSNESS AT A DISPROPORTIONATE RATE IS THE NATIVE COMMUNITY AND THE AFRICAN-AMERICAN COMMUNITY. SO HAVING CULTURALLY RELEVANT SUPPORT MEANS THAT OFTENTIMES, FOLKS IN OUR COMMUNITY PREFER TO BE IN SHELTERS TOGETHER. BUT WE'RE ALSO WORKING TO SUPPORT OUR SHELTER PROVIDERS AS WELL AS OUR STREET OUTREACH FOLKS. EVEN TODAY, I GOT A TEXT MESSAGE FROM THE PASTOR AT ALL NATIONS INDIAN CHURCH IN SOUTH MINNEAPOLIS. THEY SAID THEY'RE SETTING UP HAND WASHING STATIONS AS WELL AS CONNECTING FOLKS WITH FOOD AND MEDICAL CARE. IT WILL BE AVAILABLE TWO TIMES A WEEK. SO THOSE ARE THE THINGS WHERE WE NEED PEOPLE TO BE CREATIVE RIGHT NOW. TO MEET FOLKS WHERE THEY ARE. THE OTHER HYGIENE STATIONS, PORT-A-POTTIES, HAND WASHING STATIONS, THROUGH THE CITY OF MINNEAPOLIS IN A PLACE WHERE THEY WEREN'T AVAILABLE BEFORE. NOW THEY CAN CONNECT WITH EACH OTHER. OUR HOPE IS TO DELIVER IT IN AN ENVIRONMENT WHERE THEY FEEL COMFORTABLE. >> THE NATIONAL AVERAGE IS LESS THAN 1%. THAT IS A NATIONAL STATISTIC. IT HAS BEEN REPORTED, AND WELL DOCUMENTED TO THE POINT THAT THE DEATH RATE FOR AFRICAN-AMERICANS AND LATINOS HAS BEEN DEMONSTRABLY HIGHER THAN FOR OTHER SEGMENTS OF THE POPULATION. WE SEE IT IN DETROIT AND NEW ORLEANS AND WASHINGTON, D.C. IS THE SAME THING TRUE SO FAR OF NATIVE-AMERICANS? >> I THINK THAT YOU CAN SEE IT HAPPENING IN ARIZONA AND IN NEW MEXICO AND WE ARE DOING EVERYTHING THAT WE CAN HERE IN THE STATE YOU CAN ASSUME THAT THE NATIVE-AMERICAN COMMUNITY WILL BE DISPROPORTIONATELY AFFECTED IN OUR STATE. WHICH IS AGAIN WHY WE NEED THOSE RESOURCES. WE NEED THE ADDITIONAL HEALTH CARE CAPACITY TO BE ABLE TO MEET THE NEED. LET'S BE CLEAR. I THINK, I'VE HEARD SOME FOLKS AND I'M SURE YOU HAVE, TOO, SAY THAT SOMEHOW THE CORONAVIRUS OR COVID-19 IS THE GREAT EQUALIZER. AND I THINK NOTHING COULD BE FURTHER FROM THE TRUTH. WHAT THIS HAS DONE, SINCE WE LAID BARE THE RACIAL INEQUITIES, THE SOCIOECONOMIC INEQUITY THAT'S WE HAVE IN OUR COUNTRY, IF YOU ARE A PERSON OF COLOR, AN IMMIGRANT, A REFUGEE, THIS WILL IMPACT YOU IN A WAY THAT'S SUBSTANTIAL. >> A NUMBER OF GROUPS, ACTIVISTS AND POLITICAL LEADERS HAVE BEEN RAISING THEIR VOICES IN RECENT DAYS TO CALL ATTENTION TO THESE DISPARITIES. IS THERE ANY PART OF YOU THAT IS CONCERNED WHEN IT BECOMES UNDERSTOOD THAT THE IMPACT FALLS ON SOME COMMUNITIES MORE THAN OTHERS, THAT THERE WILL BE A NATIONAL URGENCY. >> YES. I AM CERTAINLY CONCERNED ABOUT THAT. AND I THINK THIS COUNTRY HAS A LONG HISTORY OF NOT FEELING THE URGENCY WHEN IT IS BLACK AND BROWN PEOPLE WHO ARE MOST IMPACTED. ALL I CAN DO IS WORK ALONGSIDE THE GOVERNOR. I THINK IN MICHIGAN OR THE LIEUTENANT GOVERNOR IN WISCONSIN, WE ARE ALL DEEPLY CONNECTED. LIFTING UP THESE ISSUES AND THAT IS ALL WE CAN DO TO REALLY MAKE SURE THAT OUR PEOPLE ARE SEEN AND HEARD AND VALUED. >> IS THERE ANYTHING IN PARTICULAR THAT YOU'RE DRAWING INSPIRATION FROM AT THIS TIME TO KIND OF GUIDE YOU THERE THIS REALLY UNPRECEDENTED MOMENT? UNDER PRECEDENTED IN MODERN TIMES? >> WELL, NATIVE PEOPLE ARE AT THE TOP OF EVERY RISK AS FAR AS POVERTY AND OTHER THINGS. I FIND GREAT COMFORT THAT WE ARE RESILIENT. DESPITE EVERYTHING, EVERYTHING HAS BEEN THROWN OUR WAY. WE ARE STILL HERE. AND THAT I HAVE A 7-YEAR-OLD, LITTLE DAUGHTER, WHO KNOWS WHO SHE IS AND WHERE SHE COMES FROM. AND THAT IS WHAT ON SHARING OUR WAYS WITH HER, THAT WE ARE STILL HERE. THAT BRINGS ME STRENGTH EVERY SINGLE DAY. >> THANK YOU FOR TALKING WITH US. >> THANK YOU FOR HAVING ME.