Pine Ridge, South Dakota —

A four-pack of rez dogs trotted toward the lone grocery store, greeting and tailing human companions in hopes of a spare scrap.

But food isn’t the easiest to come by for many residents here.

This community, tucked along the southern edge of South Dakota, is the most populous of the Pine Ridge Reservation, which stretches 2.1 million acres across a landscape of grassy plains, pine-speckled rolling hills and striking badlands.

It’s also one of the most economically depressed areas in the United States, and it’s nearing a state of emergency as the federal government shutdown has hampered the delivery of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program funds and other sustenance assistance.

Residents here are running out of food, running out of options and are tearfu

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