Native Americans in South Dakota (Pine Ridge: homes, high school, casinos)

[sdgoldpanner]

Farouche,
Found another site you may be interested in.
http://www.indeed.com/
You can just type in "health" for Rapid City, SD.
This will get you a daily list of health related jobs in Rapid City daily.
I have used it and landed a great job a while back using it.
Good Luck

Bob

[Farouche]

Hey, Bob! Thanks for the info. Indeed.com is a great site.
How are things going with you, by the way?
I'd love to know how things are progressing with you and Tom and your statue.
I hope all is going well with that.
Best wishes,
Bianca

[ladynitenday]

Had to jump in here. I am part Blackfeet, and Cherokee. I ran into a "lot" more prejudice when I lived in Oregon and Oklahoma than here. My son is married to a girl from Rosebud Res and I went to college at the University there at a much older age then most students. Every student is required to take classes on what alcohol and drugs can do. They are doing their darnedest to teach tribal members why they need to clean up their acts but so many are just sure nothing will ever happen to them that it doesn't sink in much.
My D-I-L's Mom is a registered nurse. She has had no problem at all finding work in the area on and off the Res. She was discriminated against, but by the tribe members who thought she was trying to be better then the rest of them by having a good paying job and not depending on handouts. She is now in her 70's, has just retired and still won't.
We're Democrats, not very religious, and have gotten along fine with everyone. Like any small towns you will get along as well as you put yourselves out. If you want to be better then the locals, push your ideas and ways into affairs that have run the same way for 100 years, you'll be disliked. If you come in with pre-conceived ideas and start trying to push ideas that were picked up before you came to town about how bad things are, then you'll have problems.
Try to get used to the place you move to, learn what is going on, find out how to act before you jump in and things should go well. The only problems I have seen are with people who move in and start trying to throw their weight around. Have seen people from California and other states start trying to show the local people how dumb they are, how backwards they are and such. They want small town living but want to run to WalMart and Costco all the time but it's not close by. They want to have the peace and quiet but will file complaints because there are feedlots nearby that they can smell. They want small town values and schools but complain because there isn't enough to do. That is just ignorance, but it happens.
I lived most of my life near Portland OR and yes, I miss large towns and cities. But, I do not miss the high prices, fast living, high stress and the miseries that go along with it. I would love to be able to drive 5 minutes to yarn stores or see a show or concert. Would I leave here to go back? Not on your life. I like walking down the street and having everyone say hi, ask about my husband and grandkids, offer me garden produce or other things and act really glad that I took the time to talk. Sometimes going to garage sales can turn into an all day trip because so many friends are there and you'll probably be invited to set a bit and have a soda pop. I've come home with a carful of things that were given me at yard sales that weren't even for sale, just because I mentioned I was looking for them.
If you leave your big town ideas behind and relax, come on down and move in.

[Jammie]

Lady, what a beautiful post! I can see why you have a lot of friends because you've got all the right ideas and qualities to be liked in a community.

[Cheryl_C]

To really reply to your comment, I'd have to use a lot of words that would be deemed inappropriate. I'll tone it down some though, because I respect your approach to the topic.
I've lived most of my life on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota. My life has been in no way easy, every year being a struggle. Rape, teenage pregnancy, unemployment, alcoholism, drug addiction, child molestation and child abuse/neglect are daily struggles that we all deal with at one point or another. It's not pretty and no one escapes completely from the misery and pain that surrounds us constantly.
I'm 18 years old and poised to graduate from Pine Ridge High School (500 hundred students, of which 150 have already dropped out). Both my best friends have babies and had it not been for my own personal determination to get out of here, I'd probably have babies, too.
Sex is the easiest form of escape and affection here, and nearly everyone at the High School does it. To promote abstinence is to set yourself up for failure. Pine Ridge is a small town with no movie theaters or malls or real rec centers. Girls begin having boyfriends in the 6th grade and are often single mothers by 17. The gangster life mentality has taken almost all the boys by storm and there are countless gangs here (and gang fights).
In our high school, we are who we are by the time we are 16. By then we have established ourselves as either drug addicts or whores. We are either good girls or BAD girls. The elite kids at school are either goody jocks or the type of athletes that are constantly surrounded by girls (or boys) and weed.
This is very sad because the only accomplishments that are really valued are athletic victories. Everyone loves basketball and no one has forgotten that the girl's b-ball team took state in '88 and again in '89. My cousin was a star forward on that team. She is now the angry mother of 3 who attends all the girls basketball games and wishes she were still playing.
For most of the people of Pine Ridge, their best times were in High School. Everything else has just been downhill. In what world do people achieve their greatest at 16/17???
In my world.
Things aren't all bad here though. There is the culture still, or whats left of it. Powwows are incredibly fun and if you were to come out, I'd suggest coming during Oglala Nation Powwow during the first week of August. It's very crowded but its worth it. The best of the best artwork is displayed there and there are locals willing to give tours. We get tourists from all over the world and that one week helps keep our few vendors and stores in the black throughout the year. It's my very favorite time.
Other than the cultural beauty, there is also the beauty of belonging. Family is always nearby and cousins of your own age often become your best friends throughout school. The friends you do make are often close as your own blood because of the shared pain we all go through.
As a victim of sexual abuse and an ex-cutter, I found a strange sort of family within the other girls of my group who had experienced the same things. So you can imagine how hard it is to come to the realization that while you'll get out, they probably won't. What will become of my 2 best friends, mothers at 17? I'm so afraid that they'll lead the same lives that our parents did, and I know that they're afraid of the same thing. But we're hopeful. We're still young enough to be hopeful.
We all make our choices here. We all pay for the choices of our parents, and their parents before them. We are the perpetual victims, the perpetuals victimizers. And yet there is a love here that is deeper than any I've ever heard about, read about. Our world is ugly and cruel, yet beautiful and warm. It's all we've ever known.

South Dakota's government has never been kind, nor will it ever be. The people off the reservation can be racist biggots...and they can also be warmhearted people whose doors are always open. I've experienced racial profiling and been called a 'prairie ******' by teenage boys in gas station...and I've also experienced people complimenting my dark hair and carmel skin...and had people admire my 'earthy' last name. The point of this is that life is hard...and life is good. People are mean and people are honorable. South Dakota is a unique mixture of light and dark, past and present. There are numerous facets and numerous levels to it and it's people. What we really need is someone who's brave enough to dig through it all...and still remain unbiased. Maybe that person is you??

[LeeLee82]

I grew up in South Dakota, typical middle-class white kid. I like everyone who's decent, regardless. Always have and always will.

During college I worked for a social service agency. Many of our clients were Lakota Sioux. "Eugene" was a memorable, beloved client. I remember he told me vivid stories of his life growing up on "the rez". Many of his fingertips were missing, due to frostbite. He told me he'd passed out drunk in a blizzard. He asked me, "How are a bucket of worms and Indians different?" I, 21 years old and not too worldly, "I dunno.." He continued, "The worms climb out and they're gone-the Indians try to climb out and get pulled back in by the Indians."

I bet there's at least one N. A. here saying, I've heard something like that said. I can not say whether it's true. This is how Eugene felt.

He was trying desperately to live "in the white world". This was the mid/late 80's.
I know he went back and forth between Eagle Butte and Sioux Falls. I lost contact with him, so don't know how his story unfolded. He was an awesome, calm, smart, quiet guy.

My opinion is (strongly) that a high percentage of white folks don't regard/treat the Native Americans well. Please don't attack me for saying this--I'm not trying to start a fight. I strongly feel they're treated like they're ***& and it's often subtle, unspoken. It's not the usual suspects, either--I'm pointing at the middle and upper class among my own skin color.

I haven't lived in South Dakota in years. I go back three times or more each year, so I don't feel completely out of touch. I don't think this has changed. It seems that Native Americans get more respect in Texas (where I live now) and in several other places I've lived/been.

BTW, my (white) uncle married/divorced a beautiful Sioux woman. My dear cousin, to whom I'm close, is a beautiful, Augie-grad, 50/50. Her mom, my (former?) aunt went back to the rez. My cousin is constantly torn w/mom pleading, "Come home to me!" and my uncle saying "Stay here."

The good stories you've all shared resonate so profoundly. Thank you all.

[L98smile]

I moved from the Chicago area to work as a dental hygienist on a reservation in South Dakota. I have enjoyed my time here, but I can't wait to move. South Dakota is very conservative and most SD citizens are close-minded (although I have known some that aren't). I loved working on the reservation, but you are absolutely right....our government has let the Native people down. I lost my job when Bush was elected into office as he reduced federal funding for many Indian Health Service programs. Most of my close friends here are American Indian (which is what one of the elders told me they prefer to be called). If I would have stayed working with the Yankton Sioux, I probably would have lived in SD forever. There are nice communities here and beautiful, untouched landscape. It is difficult to meet people as most have lived here "forever" and aren't too concerned with meeting new people (not that they are mean...just not real outgoing). I lived here for 2 years before I really met anyone, and I am a very outgoing person in my mid-twenties. Sioux Falls, Vermillion, and Rapid City are all very nice. Those cities tend to me more open-minded and have more cultural/arts activities. Many times people here give the American Indians a bad rap. They are wonderful people with the same problems that all races have....it is just that they are in small, concentrated rural areas so you notice it more. I would probably have a drinking problem if I lived out in the middle of nowhere (like Rosebud) too. All in all, South Dakota is a nice place. It's great for raising families. It is not the most optimal location for a single person that is from a city and has more liberal views.

[jaada]

Originally Posted by Farouche

Hi, Jammie. I knew you'd respond. Yes, some native Americans prefer to be called Indians, and some do not, I was told.
As far as "happy and content," it seems that when reservations in South Dakota can boast of an average life expectancy of age 52, and have amazingly high rates of alcoholism, suicide, violence, child death rates, and in some places resemble a Third World country, we're talking about neglect. I know things are improving, but there's a long, long way to go. Am I totally wrong here?
I'm sorry, Jammie, I really didn't mean to bash your state, but I just want to know if anyone is noticing what I'm seeing. If I'm wrong, that's just great.
Anyone else care to comment?
Are there any Indians that think I'm full of ****?
Please let me know.

no you are not wrong here- most natives prefer to be called native american not indians as we didnt come from india, i am native american thank you. most reservations are like 3rd world countries and have lots of problems with suicide and alcoholism. they are not all happy and content as much of white america would like you to believe. however things are changing for the native peoples all over and hopefully the reservations there will soon change for the better.

[ducksburg]

Originally Posted by jaada

no you are not wrong here- most natives prefer to be called native american not indians as we didnt come from india, i am native american thank you. most reservations are like 3rd world countries and have lots of problems with suicide and alcoholism. they are not all happy and content as much of white america would like you to believe. however things are changing for the native peoples all over and hopefully the reservations there will soon change for the better.

Can you try to move from reservations to other places?If it can help you change lives for the better.

[jaada]

Originally Posted by ducksburg

Can you try to move from reservations to other places?If it can help you change lives for the better.

what do you mean? move from reservation to another reservation?