First lady Jill Biden to visit Navajo Nation, New Mexico

WINDOW ROCK, Ariz. — First lady Jill Biden will visit the Navajo Nation Thursday, meeting with Navajo leaders as part of a three-day swing through the southwestern U.S. 

First lady to visit Navajo Nation

The White House said the first lady will first visit Albuquerque, N.M., on Wednesday, where she will tour a health clinic in the city’s South Valley with Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham. 

Thursday, Biden will visit the Navajo Nation, meeting with President Jonathan Nez and First Lady Phefelia Nez in

Window Rock, Ariz. Then on Friday, the White House said Biden planned to visit a vaccination site and sit in on a listening session with students. 

The White House did not offer further details about the visit, but Nez told the Arizona Republic that Biden planned to also meet with the Navajo Nation’s second lady, Dottie Lizer. 

About the region

The Navajo Nation extends across the Four Corners region, covering parts of Utah, Arizona and New Mexico. 

Window Rock serves as the capital of the Navajo Nation, which was hit particularly hard by the COVID-19 pandemic. Cases continue to decline in the region now, but at one point, the rate of infection was much higher than the national average. 

In November, the Biden transition team announced the appointment of Dr. Jill Jim, the executive director of the Navajo Department of Health, to serve on the then-president-elect’s COVID-19 advisory board. 

Read more: 

• In a pandemic, Navajo community steps up for its vulnerable
• NASA is naming the rocks and soil on Mars in the Navajo language
• Navajo Nation wins court battle to extend U.S. Census count; appeal expected

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