This page was last updated: February 1, 2010
The American Indian TODAY
(Source: www.sioux.org)
Our Giving Hearts
Within our culture we shared everything with everyone. If one discovered an abundance of any thing…meat, berries, furs for pelts etc. that one took great pleasure in sharing it with everyone else. If we starved, we all starved, if we feasted, we all feasted. We had no social hierarchy of the have’s and the have not’s. Thus, we were happy and we were free. (Editor's note - Reminds me of Acts 2)
(Source: www.NRCprograms.org - Sioux nation relief fund)
Life on the Reservation:
Most of the 13 small communities on the Cheyenne River Reservation do not have water and sewer systems making if difficult to live in sanitary conditions. With few jobs available many tribal members have no jobs and two-thirds of the population survives on much less than one-third the American average income. These dismal living conditions have contributed to feelings of hopelessness and despair among the youth. Indian Country Today reports than one in five girls on the Cheyenne River Reservation has contemplated suicide and more than one in ten have attempted it.
The Sioux Nation Relief Fund focuses on serving the thousands of Sioux Indian people living with hunger, isolation, and poverty. On the Sioux reservations, unemployment is staggering 35 to 85 percent, compared to the national average of 8.9 percent. Some 50 to 60 percent of the people live below the federal poverty level.
Children and the elderly are most vulnerable to poverty's affects. Many are routinely burdened with lack of food and nutrition-related illnesses, lack of access to health care, and life in substandard housing. No one should have to live like this.
Mr. Charging Crow shared that he has gone cold in winters past because he could not afford firewood.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
Cheyenne River Sioux Indian Reservation, SD
(Source: www.NRCprograms.org - Sioux nation relief fund)
What happens to the money the government allocates for Native Americans?
Simply put, budget cutbacks and governmental policies have made it hard for many Native Americans to feed their families. With housing in disrepair and overcrowded, many Native Americans on the reservations lack any permanent address. This makes them ineligible to receive food stamps or public assistance. In remote communities, those who are able to receive food stamps frequently lack the transportation to go off the reservation and shop at a regular grocery store where they could stretch their food stamp value. In many reservation communities, there is only a convenience store where food options are limited and pricey. In these stores, the food stamps don't go very far.
What about the money made from Casino operations?
The BIA reports 562 tribes in the U.S. Of them, NIGA reports that only 223 have casinos. Of those, only 73 give payouts. These are not the reservations where NRC works. In fact, the research shows that casinos need to be within 50 miles of a metro area (with 10,000 or more residents) to be highly profitable. In our experience, the rural casinos do not have enough traffic to generate large profits — the casinos do create a few tribal jobs. Some of the tribes with profitable casinos do help other tribes, but even that is regulated by the government.
Do Native Americans have to stay on the reservations?
Native Americans are free to leave the reservations, although not without leaving their family behind. Family is very important to Native Americans and, for most, their reservation is "home."
Leaving the reservation also means a loss of community support. Families on the reservation sometimes combine their resources in an effort to stay together. Some willing candidates are unable to leave, due to a lack of transportation. Many do leave, however, to find work or complete a college education. In turn, they help support the ones they left behind.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
(Source: www.NRCprograms.org - American Indian Relief Council)
Native Americans living on the rural and remote reservations of the Northern Plains struggle daily with isolation, limited employment opportunities, and a harsh and resource-poor environment. Poverty is all too common and weighs most heavily on those who are most fragile — the elderly, children, and families.
(Source: www.habitat.org - Cheyenne River habitat, Eagle Butte, SD chapter)
Habitat for Humanity does not give away houses. We work in partnership with low-income families and volunteers who provide hundreds of hours of labor. As well as sweat equity, families make a down payment and a monthly mortgage payment. Prospective homeowners attend a series of classes to prepare them for the responsibility of home ownership. The homes are modestly sized and built to keep construction and maintenance costs at a minimum. Habitat sells the homes at no profit, and no-interest loans are arranged
Over 180 families are waiting for a Habitat home on the Cheyenne River Sioux Reservation! (Editor's note - If unemployment is high, there are few who can even afford to make the small payment to own a habitat home. So how many more need homes who don't even qualify for one?)
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
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