Oglala Sioux threaten ‘beer blockade’

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. – In a desperate effort to fight the ravages of alcoholism on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, leaders of the Oglala Sioux Tribe are threatening to set up roadblocks today and stop members from bringing in beer bought at four outlying stores.

Alcohol has long been banned on the 16,500-member reservation, where drinking has been a scourge for generations. But four stores in Whiteclay, Neb., a village a few hundred feet outside the reservation, sell an estimated 4 million cans of beer every year, mostly to Indians.

Tribal members said that from now on, they will confiscate beer bought in Whiteclay.

“We are the last line of defense when it comes to protecting our people,” said Duane Martin of the reservation’s Strong Heart Civil Rights Movement.

The effects of alcoholism can be seen in most families on the reservation, in accidents, violence, sexual abuse and suicide, said Terryl Blue-White Eyes, director of the reservation’s alcohol and drug program. The youth suicide rate there is the highest in the nation, and most involve alcohol, she said.