BOTTLED UP ON THE RESERVATION: THE RED MANS PROBLEM?

Essay by beemerdad1University, Bachelor'sA+, October 2004

download word file, 7 pages 4.2

Downloaded 70 times

Name 1

Its influence on family is disastrous. It deteriorates individual and family financial resources. Grave is a word I use for what it does to your health. Imagine something this disheartening, yet it has a unique attractiveness. Some believe it keeps them sane, others wallow in the its uncontrollable desire. I am referring to alcohol and the effect it has on every living thing it consumes. Could it get worse? No, I thought, until I visited the tribes of the Omaha and Winnebago. I saw what it has done to the families, community and the destruction it leaves in its path. I knew there was a stereotype about the Indian and their use of alcohol, but now I want to know why.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the facts and fiction about the consumption of alcohol and its affects on the native people of this country and the reservations they live on.

The knowledge gained will be used to understand what I witnessed on the reservation. I will look at daily life on reservations in the United States and the ongoing controversy of alcohol use.

BOTTLED UP ON THE RESERVATION: THE RED MANS PROBLEM?

Indian people have been dealing with alcohol since the white man traded booze with them for furs. Today Indian people embrace the thought of trading lifestyles. A change that is easier said then done on the reservations. Alcohol has landed and is clinching its evil claws without remorse. It has become a problem that is out of control. "Alcohol and substance abuse is the most severe health and social problem facing Indian tribes and people today."(Title 25, U.S.C.) There are many signs of alcoholism and alcohol abuse on the reservations. The obvious ones are the spent bottles and cans littering the streets...