Current Issues
“Native Americans have the shortest lifespan that any ethnic group in the United States; highest infant mortality rate; higher suicide rate; lowest per capita income; highest unemployment rate; highest high school drop-out rate; the poorest housing and the most inadequate health care” (p166). These short comings and hardships are results of their forced assimilation into mainstream culture. When they lived in the forests of Minnesota and across the United States, they were some of the richest people alive, not in monetary wealth but cultural/traditional wealth and the earth was their provider (Gill). Tribal Schools and Casinos: Though these statistics are distressing, an important advancement in Native American autonomy is the creation of various new tribal schools run by Native Americans in the great lakes region. These schools are giving new opportunities to indigenous children and families to reconnect with their past cultures, relearn indigenous traditions, as well as learn basic skills taught in public schools. More information about a few of these schools can be found on our timeline at history.htm. One form of income for many Native Americans today is through the establishment of casinos across the country. In 1991 the Mille Lacs band opened Grand Casino Mille Lacs and Grand Casino Hinckley. The official Mille Lacs website notes “Since then, casino revenues have allowed the Mille Lacs Band to strengthen its cultural identity, return to economic self-sufficiency, rebuild its reservation, and increase the prosperity of the entire region.” Even if these statements are true, is this the way of life Native Americans should be forced to succumb to? It does not seem to be a lifestyle in tune with their worldviews and rich history, but a way of life forced onto them by the cash economy and the demand of a large portion of American culture obsessed with monetary growth and getting ahead by gambling (which generally puts people further behind in the end). This monetary wealth obsession of western culture fails to represent the ideals and values of traditional Native American culture. Conclusions: Through the information on these pages, one can conclude that the Ojibwe have been in constant, intimate contact with the environment since first stepping onto the soil of North America and have done everything in their power to have the smallest possible environmental footprints left behind. In the video “Ojibwe: Gikinoo’ Amaadiwin, We Gain Knowledge (Education)” a young boy expressed the idea that even he thinks about the future Ojibwe generations when making personal life decisions. It is instilled into their culture to think about the community, future generations, and the impact their lifestyle choices have on the environment, and they try and factor these issues into every facet of life. They take from the land, just as every human being does, but then they give back in return. To care about the future generations of Ojibwe, the Ojibwe must care about the preservation of the environment—an idea we could all learn from. For current information on the Ojibwe visit www.press-on.net, the online Native American Press Ojibwe News. |
Ojibwe reservations include the following:
http://www.minnesotagaming.com/NewFiles /grandcasinomillelacs.html |
