Single Story: Drunk Native Americans

Single Story: Drunk Native Americans

  For many years, Native Americans have been seen to be lesser than those around them. As the story goes, Native Americans weren't strong enough to hold their ground and were pushed away from what was theirs. However, (as the story goes)the United States hasn't forgotten about them, as evidenced by the millions of dollars that various tribes are given every year. I've heard many say, "oh yeah, the government just gives them money, so they don't have to work for anything. They just end up becoming drunks and living off free money from the government." As the story goes, Native Americans are just lazy has-beens that suffer from the mistakes made by their ancestors. 

  In this video, it is reported that 4 out of 5 people in this tribe suffer from alcoholism. Reportedly, 90% of the 13,000 crimes that happened on the reservation were related to alcohol. Families continue to be torn apart and children are born with illnesses due to the alcohol issues. To make matters worse, a small town outside of the reservation is "preying" on the alcoholics by selling alcohol in large amounts (no alcohol is sold on the reservation). There is no question that alcohol is a major issue in this tribe, but are all tribes this way?

   When someone that is not familiar with the situation views this video, they quickly generalize because they often have little knowledge of Native Americans as a whole. They assume that all Native Americans struggle with alcoholism and that all tribes lack the leadership to make a meaningful change. This is detrimental because there are many wonderful Native American tribes and people that are doing great things.

   Pictures and memes like this are examples of harsh generalizations.

   I have a personal problem with this single story because I have Native American ancestors. I am a part of the Chickasaw Nation. In fact, I did an internship in Oklahoma with my tribe at their physical therapy office. While I was there, I saw no sign of alcoholism. I'm not saying that the problem doesn't exist, but there are many more stories that need to be told. My tribe, the Chickasaw Nation, is the most successful tribe in the country. They own and run banks, hospitals, libraries, chocolate companies, and many other worthwhile companies. Their culture runs deep in their veins and they are proud of where they came from. Videos and pictures similar to those I have chosen are highly detrimental to Native Americans. These artifacts paint a picture that is entertaining for many to look at, but is not the reality. Native Americans have thousands of positive stories that need to be told.