Native American tribe is on a preservation mission as it celebrates trust status for ancestral lands

By SUSAN MONTOYA BRYAN
Associated Press

SANTA ANA PUEBLO, N.M. (AP) — A Native American community in the heart of New Mexico has officially doubled in size as more than 93 square miles of ancestral land was taken into trust by the U.S. government for Santa Ana Pueblo. Tribal leaders and federal land managers gathered for a signing ceremony Wednesday. Pueblo leaders say the long-awaited action will ensure preservation of a sprawling stretch of high desert to which they have strong cultural ties. It was here on the mesas, along the cliffs and in the canyons northwest of Albuquerque where their ancestors once farmed and hunted. Nationwide, nearly 750,000 acres have been put into trust for tribes since 2009.