Stereotypes Of Native Americans

Alcoholism is one of our nation’s largest social issues to date, and carries with it many negative aspects, the most dire being death at the hands of this disease. Alcohol and alcoholism have been part of societies for centuries. This habit was brought over to the new world when the first settlers landed on the shores of what was to become America. Furthermore, in bringing alcohol to this new land an entire nation of Native American Indians were introduced to a product that has affected them more negatively than any other to date, and continues to suffer from today and probably well into the future.

While he may think that drinking is a way to escape being Native American, in actuality, it just perpetuates the cycle of alcoholism on the reservation.

White males, and then White females. All of these groups had lower rates in 1999 than in 2009 (AI/AN males, 97.3 and 98.9, respectively; AI/AN females, 41.5 and 51.6; White males, 36.6 and 40.2; White females, 12.6 and 16.1).” With these results it is obvious how alcohol seems to affect not only American Indians but also Native Alaskans, substantially more than Non-Hispanic White

Attempting to treat individuals that have alcohol related issues requires a depth of knowledge and skill, specifically, when providing care to individuals of differentiating ethnic and cultural backgrounds. The National on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) article discusses a multitude of resourceful information that is related to ethnicity, culture, and alcohol. Procuring detailed information that defines and discusses ethnicity, race, culture, cultural identification, ethnoculturally competence, and cultural competence provides a solid foundation for the beginner, intermediate, and expert clinician reading this material. This paper explores and offers an explanation of the author’s efforts to convey a clear, compelling and cogent message, the NIAAAs use of relevant sources to substantiate perspectives assumed, claims made and positions taken, and recommended strategies regarding suggested improvements to this article.

Some people disagree with the idea that the Native Americans are not solely to blame for their addiction to alcohol. When considering how a person feels about this topic, they must take into consideration the fact that it was not an issue for the Native Americans before the white settlers arrived. Their lives were much simpler, and they did not have to face this problem. Instead, they fell into deep poverty due to their inability to avoid drinking in excess. They could not keep jobs, and put an emphasis on buying liquor, rather than food. Also, the treatment that the white people reserved for the Native

The term alcoholism is a substance that is obtains through the mouth into the stomach, giving the individual a sudden feel of the alcohol. It’s an addiction to the consumption of alcoholic liquor or to the metal illness and compulsive behavior resulting from alcohol dependency. Within the Navajo nation reservation, I’d say, alcoholism is a very huge concern in the reservation. Alcohol is obtain and use by Navajo men and women to teenagers of boys and girls. It may be sold a remote area that is call bootleggers. It’s a very complicated drug to make our past and future generation understand it is not a good source. Prevention conferences do their best to talk to the community. Many with the single homes of other families have experience

Due to the hopelessness and poverty that stems from many years of oppression from the government and whites, alcoholism has become a huge problem amongst the Native Americans and has become inescapable on the plantation. There are numerous examples where Native Americans have turned to alcohol as a result of some tragedy. For instance, Luke Warm Water was driven to alcoholism after his son, an infant, died due to lack of medical attention. All of the band members of Coyote Springs have been affected by alcoholism. Thomas-builds-the-fire’s father, a basketball star, became an alcoholic due to the death of his wife. Junior’s parents died in a drunk driving accident and now is following in their suit, binging with Victor whenever the opportunity presents itself and tormented with dreams of his parents. Victor’s alcoholism is due to his own suffering as a child being sexually abused by a priest. All of these people have been oppressed and abused and have suffered in their own ways and are the common people of Native Americans. Thomas-builds-the-fire hates when white people identify themselves as Native Americans because they have not endured the sufferings in which true Native Americans have. While he may be more inclined to sympathize with Iron Eyed Cody because of the persecution he experienced by the Irish, their experiences have been different and it would be hard for Thomas-builds-the-fire to relate to him due to his otherwise contented

Native Americans living on a modern day society reservation, face is always living on that reservation, no hopes for their future and these obstacles lead to one big issue of alcoholism. Junior faces plenty of loss caused from alcohol, and they’re within months of each other. Junior thinking about his grandmother, “But my grandmother had never drunk alcohol in her life. Not one drop. That’s the rarest kind of Indian in the world,” (158). Junior and his parents lost Grandmother Spirit; Eugene, his father’s friend, and Mary, his sister due to someone making the decision to drink and make choices while they’re under the influence. When Junior and the Reardan team wins against Wellpinit, Junior realizes the differences between both teams. “Okay,

Most people do not end up becoming alcoholics because they are completely satisfied with their life, happy and joyful, and drinking only to celebrate. Yes, it is highly likely that genetics play an important role in the formation of the disease, but a majority of alcoholics drink because they have endured some great trauma. This can either be from trauma from an outside source or emotional turmoil from within. The difference between an alcoholic who drinks because of instances of domestic abuse or clinical depression versus a Native American alcoholic is that the average person’s alcoholism is symptomatic of individual experiences. Alcoholism among the native population is encouraged by overwhelming and uncontrollable outside cultural forces. This is all to say that when Louis writes about his recovery from alcoholism and the effects of the disease on the Native American population, he is reaching beyond the surface implications of excessive drink and moving toward the causes and conditions of that substance abuse. Alcoholism is representative of the struggles the people on Pine Ridge Reservation endure because of EuroAmerican oppression. “Beer, blood, soil, home” writes Louis on page 46. It is all one-in-the-same, representative of a larger trauma that needs to be healed.

            In this article Denise Martinez-Ramundo, talks about what she saw on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation. She talks about how much and how severe the alcohol abuse is on the reservation. She says that children as young as five or six years old have had alcoholic drinks. She also gives us the staggering statistic that 80-90% of adults on the Reservation have severe alcohol abuse problems. Lining the streets of the Pine Ridge

The contextual cultural experiences of most Native Americans has led to the normalization of drinking especially among age groups and related events such as among peers and when preaching. Nevertheless, the stereotype of the “drunken Indian” has also had an impact on the consumption levels in this cultural group (U.S. National Library of Medicine, 2011). A study of the Navajo Indians led to the conclusion that stereotype can lead members of the group to consider excessive drinking as a normal part of the cultural practices of a particular cultural group. Indeed, the Native American population has been influenced by such stereotypes which traverse the history of the Indians, for example, in as far as consumption of alcohol is concerned (U.S. National Library of Medicine, 2011).

Native American Reservations Native Americans have extremely high rates of alcohol and drug abuse, especially by young people. “According to the National Survey on Drug Use and Health, nearly 9.2% of Native Americans ages 12 and older were current heavy alcohol users, the highest rate of any ethnic group. In 2015, approximately 346,000 Native Americans reported binge drinking within the past month” (Guarnotta). This increases the rates of youth dropping out of school, exceeding the rates of White, Hispanic, and African American youth dropouts. Native American teen suicide rate is 2.5 times greater than the national average (Guarnotta).

Alcoholism is the leading health and social problem of American Indians than any other race. Native Americans who end up leaving the reservation to pursue education or employment opportunities express a high degree of discomfort and anxiety as a result of “feeling caught in two worlds.” By leaving the reservation they are abandoning their traditions, however temporarily, and suffering a sense of personal loss and insecurity. In entering a new world, this sense of loss and insecurity is heightened and becomes exacerbated, particularly if they do not experience success or acceptance in the new environment (Major, A.K. A 2003). However, if success and acceptance in the new world occurs, these individuals will still suffer the pangs of abandonment since they can never fully return to the reservation. In some cases, forced assimilation has extinguished the culture from many Indians as their grandparents and parents were forced to abandon the old ways in order to become more American. Thomas Jefferson, as well as many others believed that Native Americans can be just as ‘White’ Americans. In an attempt to increase local employment opportunities, many tribes have turned to gambling casinos and the collateral business which support these ventures. Illegal activities would certainly increase among Indians because of the simple fact that they need to survive by any means necessary. This can all

Following the European invasion in America, Native Americans came to endure many problems. While some have faded, others still linger on in their lives. The issue of alcohol and alcoholism is one of them. From settlers using it to deceive, to today’s issues on the reservation, alcohol has played a devastating role in the lives of Native Americans. Knowing how the issue of alcohol became such a predominate part of Native Americans lives will allow us to spawn ideas on how to end the problem.

Alcohol has been the lifeblood of civilization dating thousands of years back in time, and it is clear to see the culture impact it has made throughout history. People perceive alcohol in many different ways; depending on gender, age, religious background, or social upbringing. Throughout history alcohol has affected different cultures and various demographics. It has been a source of pleasure and aesthetic in many cultures, along with being one of the oldest rites of passage, especially in modern day American society. Alcohol and drinking were also an integral part of religious observances throughout history and culture. The use of alcohol can be seen as a social lubricant, and besides being a thirst quencher, it can play a pivotal role