Religious Deprivation
Confinement to Reservations
During the time of President Andrew Jackson and for a period of time afterward, the U.S. government decided that it was necessary to take land away from the Indians, to give it to white settlers who were moving west. Levy states “a number of deprivations, including confinement to reservations and federal wardship, are cited as causes for many Indians to feel inadequate” (55)
Vincent Parillo in The Encyclopedia of Social Problems discusses how the natives were “forbidden to engage in their own spiritual practices, they instead faced zealous Protestant missionaries” (Parillo 607) who attempted to convert them. . Indians typically believed in a more holistic spiritual practice based on the respect for animals and nature.
Beauvais states “Unemployment rates are high, school completion rates are low, and basic support systems are underdeveloped” (256). In addition to their traumatic effects on children, these abusive practices spawned several generations of Indian people with limited parenting experience (256). These socioeconomic factors are reasons why the Natives turned to drinking as a means to avoid the suffering.
Laurence French and Jim Hornbuckle discuss the significance of the loss of culture on the Native American population.They state “Self-determination (1975) is the current federal policy, which attempts to ‘mainstream’ Native Americans into the larger society” (278). Even the idea of self-determination is a foreign concept in the Native culture. Indians believe in adaptation to versus conquering the environment.
Unemployment
Cultural Obliteration
Why Natives turn to Alcohol
Historians and researchers have spent considerate time and effort to explore the causes and reasons why Indians turned to alcohol. The majority of the information indicates Native Americans are assumed to be alcoholics due to the loss of their cultural norms.