The portrait of Native Americans, their past and current social problems

Chapter 3 - 3.1

Chapter 3: Social problems in reservations

3.1. Alcoholism
Alcohol is a serious problem in Indian Reservations. It affects generations. According to Fiorillo Doreen “Alcoholism on Indian Reservations”: American Indians have historically had extreme difficulty with the use of alcohol. At times, American Indians have made paupers of themselves to obtain alcohol. Problems continue among contemporary Indians with 12% of the deaths among American Indians and Alaska Natives being alcohol related. Use of alcohol varies by age, gender and tribe with women, and older women in particular, being least likely to be regular drinkers. Indians, particularly women, are more likely to abstain entirely from alcohol than the general US population. Frequency of use among American Indians is generally less than the general population, but the quantity consumed when it is consumed is generally greater (Doreen Alcoholism on Indian Reservations).

A survey of death certificates among over a four year period showed that deaths among Indians due to alcohol are about 4 times more common than in the general US population and are often due to traffic collision, liver disease, suicide, homicide etc. (American Indian alcoholism). Deaths due to alcohol are among American Indians more common in men and among Northern Plains Indians. What is more, Alaska Natives show the least indication of deaths due to alcohol abuse (American Indian alcoholism). Alcohol abuse is associated with development of diseases such as sprains and muscle strains, hearing and vision problems, kidney and bladder problems, head injuries, pneumonia, tuberculosis, dental problems, liver problems and pancreatic tumor (American Indian alcoholism).The main cause of alcoholism is according to (American Indian alcoholism) low self-esteem. On the other hand, according to (Doreen, Alcoholism on Indian Reservations)

Native Americans living on reservations struggle to keep and maintain their cultural identities. Some tribes still live in abject poverty while trying to come to terms with the frustration that arises from socio-cultural limitations. Many tribal people drink to numb themselves and escape their personal, social and family problems, very much like other people do. However, for Native people, drinking alcohol, can lead to alcohol poisoning because of a genetic inability to metabolize alcohol like other races (Doreen, Alcoholism on Indian Reservation). Very popular phenomenon in Indian Reservations became fetal alcohol syndrome. “Fetal alcohol syndrome, or FAS, affects all racial groups, but American Indians are hardest hit. Studies from the Center for Disease Control show the fetal alcohol rate among Indians is 30 times higher than whites. Health workers on Minnesota Indian reservations say fetal alcohol damage is a huge problem in some tribal communities. There's a growing effort to fight a problem that, for years, has been ignored or misunderstood.” (Robertson 2007). Alcohol has had a devastating impact on American Indians. Even pregnant women drink alcohol. It causes a brain drain in Indian communities."I would say it's very definitely a problem, almost pervasive," says Sandra Parsons, director of Family and Children's Services for the Red Lake Band of Ojibwe in northern Minnesota. "I haven't found anybody yet who disputes that. I think people would be literally amazed at how prevalent it might be."(Robertson 2007). Sandra Parsons has worked with American Indian kids for years on three reservations. She admits that the extent of fetal alcohol damage is huge. When Red Lake tribal member Sue Antone adopted three kids, Joshua, Matthew and Shyra, she had no idea what she decided to do. The children were adopted form an Indian tribe in Arizona, where Antone lived for several years. Seemingly the children seemed to be normal, but in real they had serious problems. They all have the same biological mother, who was an alcoholic and was in prison after being caused of murder. Antone discovered very early that something is wrong with the children. She claimed that she had the most problems with 11-year-old Matthew. "I would be crying, because it was so hard," says Antone. "Having him in a room was like having 10 kids in that room, not just one. He never could sit still. He was very destructive, abusive, not only to his siblings, but to himself. I swear, I thought he could not feel pain."(Robertson 2007). He was diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder when he was 18 months old. Antone got him to a fetal alcohol diagnostic clinic at the University of Minnesota. He was diagnosed with fetal alcohol syndrome at the age of 3. Moreover, it turned out that, the two other kids were also damaged by alcohol. Joshua and Shyra had learning, behavior and health problems. Antone to prove that the alcohol is the main reason for children’s problems wrote many letters to their biological mother who was in prison. After some time the woman admitted that she drank when she was pregnant, during all three pregnancies. Shyra at the age of 16 struggled in school. Apart from this she had learning problems especially with basic math and counting money. The similar situation was with Joshua but the girls have still not been diagnosed with fetal alcohol damage. According to Antone (Robertson 2007) schools in Indian Reservations are mostly unresponsive to problems connected with alcohol. She says that there is little support in the Red Lake community for kid’s special needs. "Every time I try to do something to try to get somebody to help me with fetal alcohol, another door slams," says Antone. "And it takes me a few more years for another door to open. Well, I don't have that many years left and I don't know if I can keep doing this. I feel like I'm failing." Very few kids at Red Lake get diagnosed with fetal alcohol damage, because this is a long process that requires input from doctors, psychologists and therapists (Robertson 2007).

“The reality is bleak on many Indian reservations. In some communities, the number of kids in special education is double the national average. American Indian students are three times as likely as other kids to drop out of school. In Minnesota, Indians are 12 times more likely to end up in prison. Alcohol damages the wiring in the brain. People exposed have trouble understanding cause and effect. They sometimes have what Parsons calls a Swiss cheese memory, making it difficult to process the world around them. "They're in trouble at school, they're in trouble at home, they're in trouble on the bus," says Parsons. "It gets to be very frustrating for these kids to believe that nobody listens, nobody understands, nobody cares. And yet they have no clue themselves as to what's going on, or why"” (Robertson 2007).

To sum up, alcoholism harms all generations of Indians. Low self-esteem, unemployment, poverty and other social problems which are present among Indian community contribute to one more called alcoholism. This is a very serious problem which should be solved as soon as possible.