"The House has now signed our death warrants and the death warrants of our children and grandchildren. The Rosebud Sioux Tribe will not allow this pipeline through our lands.”
Rosebud Sioux President, Cyril Scott
http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/...
I will let the numbers speak for themselves.
Diabetes, often alcohol related - 4 times the national average.
Liver disease, often alcohol and drug related - 6 times the national average.
Vehicular accidents, often alcohol and drug related - 7 times the national average.
Suicide, often alcohol and drug related - 5 times the national average.
Homicide, often alcohol and drug related - 4 times the national average.
Mean age of death is 59 - 23 years less than the national average.
Comparable to Liberia or Sierra Leone.
Then there's crushing poverty, unemployment, fetal alcohol syndrome.
No, Keystone XL is not the problem.
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There is little question that the Rosebud Sioux, like all other Plains peoples, have experienced centuries of brutalization. They have been robbed of their lands, their children, their culture, and, in many respects, their future. Generations of Indian and non-Indian leaders have struggled with how to address all of these problems which, combined, seem overwhelming.
Cyril Scott does little to help matters by grandstanding. And "grandstanding" is a good choice of words. He came to power in a bitterly divisive election in 2012 - as so many are in Indian Country. His predecessor, Rodney Bordeaux, had circumvented tribal term limits, but ultimately lost by a small margin of votes.
But Scott himself is the target of a tribal ethics investigation. He has been accused of violating the Rosebud Constitution, ignoring council decisions, and acting unilaterally. Perhaps these are merely charges by disgruntled Bordeaux supporters. Organizations like the White Buffalo Calf Woman Society which seeks to address the endemic problem of violence against women on the rez have had their budget cut from nearly all sources. They are begging for money - including here at Daily Kos.
People are dying on the Rosebud Rez.
But it's not from Keystone.
Cyril Scott knows better.