Three-part documentary series premieres today on HBO and Max

Recent documentation on Native peoples in the United States highlights the troubling and tragic legacies between Native Americans and the U.S. government, for example: “Lakota Nation vs. USA” Others like Show time”Murder at Big Horn» draw current issues such as the crisis of murdered and missing indigenous women, and the relative inattention of the media and government to take it seriously.

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But “Navajo Police: Class 57” takes a different approach. Instead of focusing on the tragic history of indigenous peoples or the contemporary crises that still plague them, HBOThe new three-part series examines the police force of the largest Indian reservation in the United States and the challenges they face as law enforcement officers and survivors of a sovereign nation.

Here’s the official synopsis for Navajo Vice: Class of 57, courtesy of HBO:

NAVAJO POLICE: CLASS OF ’57 is set against the vast backdrop of the Navajo Nation. It’s a three-part documentary series that follows a group of recruits as they work their way through the Navajo Police Academy and onto the battlefield over the course of a year. where they must contend with rising crime and centuries of neglect to keep their community together. This personnel, known as Class 57, is under intense pressure and the stakes are high as the survival of their sovereign nation depends in part on the success of this academy.

The Navajo Nation is the largest Indian reservation in the United States, covering an area the size of West Virginia and a population of more than 190,000 people. However, the Navajo Police Department (NPD) only has 180 police officers. Under pressure from the department to increase its numbers, the NPD became the only tribal law enforcement agency in the country with its own police academy. All recruits are Navajo and drawn from the community, but with the attrition rate exceeding 50%, the training officers have their work cut out for them. NAVAJO POLICE: CLASS OF 57 follows officers and recruits through rigorous training, physical challenges and self-doubt, delving into their backstory to reveal an overview of life on the reservation and the motivations that brought them into the military.

Although the turbulent stories of the 57th Class unfold in real time, the series presents an ever-expanding portrait of the Navajo Nation as a whole. A deep sense of nationhood underpins efforts to tackle a range of social issues faced by police on the job, such as alcoholism, drugs, violence and domestic violence. to dramatic intersections of personal and professional, past and present. In this unique social and cultural context, the NDP stands as a microcosm of the Navajo Nation itself, revealing its history, its uncertain future, and its resilience.

Kalil Hudson, Alex JablonskiAnd David Nordstrom share directorial duties on Navajo Vice: Class of 57. Hudson, Jablonski and Nordstrom also serve as executive producers on the series. Blackhorse Law, Miles Esty, Nicole Scott

, Jonathan Silberberg, Davis GuggenheimAnd Lauren Powell Jobs. Nancy Abraham, Lisa HellerAnd Tina Nguyen also executive producer through HBO. “Navajo Police: Class of 57” is Concordia Studio production for HBO Documentaries.

The first two episodes of Navajo Police Class 57 premiere on HBO. Max tonight, with the third and final episode airing tomorrow. Watch the trailer for the docuseries, as well as an exclusive clip from it, below.