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DLN Issues : Alcohol Issues

Whiteclay alcohol sales topic at panel's hearing



7 Oct 2002

RUSHVILLE, Neb. (AP) - Most people attending a legislative hearing about alcohol sales in the border town of Whiteclay agreed on one thing Tuesday - there is no easy solution.

The Legislature's General Affairs Committee interim hearing drew about 50 people to discuss the amount of beer sold to residents of the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation by four stores in nearby Whiteclay.

Alcohol is banned on the South Dakota reservation, a 5,000-square-mile expanse that is home to 15,000 Oglala Sioux and has one of the nation's highest alcoholism-related mortality rates.

Nebraska officials have been criticized for ignoring the problem, but have said they cannot stop the legal sale of alcohol.

Among the 15 people testifying Tuesday was Nebraskans for Peace representative Byron Peterson of Minatare.

The problem of public intoxication and sale of alcohol to intoxicated individuals still is prevalent and particularly bad around payday for many tribal members, Peterson said.

He said he witnessed no law enforcement personnel around when he visited the community at those times.

Others testifying suggested earmarking a portion of alcohol sales revenue in Whiteclay to finance alcohol treatment and related programs.

Attorney General Candidate Mike Meister was one of several people who advocated drawing up an interlocal agreement allowing Pine Ridge Tribal Police to help patrol Whiteclay.

"While the state patrol and Sheridan County Sheriff's Office do an admirable job with the resources they have, they cannot consistently patrol the Whiteclay area to the extent some people believe is necessary to address any problems which may exist," Meister said.

Pine Ridge Reservation President John Yellow Steele called for legislative approval of a five-mile buffer zone around the reservation in which no alcohol could be sold.

Reservation residents now walk from their homes to Whiteclay, he said. That could change if liquor stores were farther away.

"I don't think you're going to find these people walking five miles," Steele said. "Whiteclay is the problem."



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They made us many promises, more than I can remember. But they kept but one - They promised to take our land...and they took it. -- Chief Red Cloud
Tunkashila, Let us stand Coalition strong in protection of our lands, our beliefs, our Sacred Spirituality, and our traditional Indigenous ways of life. We stand in strong support of Indigenous Rights and the Inherent Allodial title of Dakota, Lakota, and Nakota Lands. Let us reclaim what is ours and work diligently to preserve what we now have.
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The Dakota/Lakota/Nakota Human Rights Advocacy Coalition (DLN) is a traditional grassroots Oyate
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