It was quite surreal, nothing but a handful of liquor stores, not even a household. As we drove down the lonely Nebraska Highway 87 near the South Dakota-Nebraska border, my family and I came upon a haunting corner of Nebraska's panhandle, Whiteclay, Neb. We were making our way up towards Badlands National Park for a family outing when I was first exposed to one of the worst atrocities occurring in the United States. I can remember seeing groups of Native American men standing around drinking 40 oz. bottles of malt liquor yet this town had no schools, no parks, just liquor stores and mobs of intoxicated men. As a child, I really couldn't comprehend what was going on in this small "community" called Whiteclay.
Omaha, my hometown, is a far way from the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation and Whiteclay, NE. While growing up in Nebraska, I always believed in our State's motto "Nebraska, the Good Life" and while I still believe Nebraska encompasses everything needed and offers the average Nebraskan a good life. However there is a place in Nebraska that offers nothing like our motto, it forces a life with little goodness onto a group of people already living well below the poverty line.
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| A better idea of the area around Pine Ridge |
I want to start by telling you a little of the history surrounding the Oglala Sioux as well as the Pine Ridge Reservation. The area that is the Pine Ridge Reservation has a dark history between the Native Americans and the United States Government. Many conflicts between the invading US citizens and the Sioux occurred in this portion of South Dakota/Nebraska including the well known Wounded Knee Massacre sparked by the famous Ghost Dance. The actual reservation was established in 1889 by the United States (via executive order) to help alleviate the struggling Oglala Sioux tribe. The reservation encompasses all of Shannon County, SD as well as parts of Bennett and Jackson counties in South Dakota. Historically, Whiteclay, NE is also part of the reservation despite being in Nebraska. Shannon County (the majority of Pine Ridge) is among the poorest counties in the United States with the per capita income of $6,286 and over 52% of the population below the poverty line. A major issue surrounding those numbers is the controversial town of Whiteclay, NE, just south of the dry Shannon County in Sheridan County, Neb.
Whiteclay, NE has always historically been part of the reservation according to the executive order signed in 1889. The US Government established a 50-square-mile strip of land in Nebraska known as the White Clay Extension to the reservation. The area was created to prevent the sale of alcohol to members of the reservation. However a small clause in the order stated that the buffer zone would only be established until it was deemed no longer necessary. It would be no longer considered necessary in only 1904, when President Theodore Roosevelt signed a new executive order removing this area from the reservation. Once this area was removed, many traders and entrepreneurs moved just south of the border to exploit the Oglala Sioux on Pine Ridge. This was the beginning of a downward spiral for the Pine Ridge population as alcohol was readily available to the masses in the reservation.
More information will be posted soon, also follow our @CrisisInWhiteclay Instagram to learn more about the atrocities occurring in and around Pine Ridge Indian Reservation. Please invite more to participate and learn about the Oglala Sioux and Pine Ridge.
