Pine Ridge really does feel like another country, although in different ways than I expected. There is no boundary preventing people on the reservation from entering America – people go shopping off the rez, travel to see their kids living in other parts of the country (often stationed there as part of their military service), and watch plenty of TV. People eat American food (unfortunately) and dress in American clothes. Everyone speaks English and only 10% of the population still speaks Lakota. Of course, a lot of people do not have the means to leave permanently even if they wanted to, so the boundaries of poverty certainly do exist.
But despite the permeability of the boundary marked by “Welcome to Pine Ridge” (or, on some roads, by nothing at all), there is a subtle, initially imperceptible difference in the people, and there is a visible change once one enters the reservation. The roads are narrow, one lane in each direction, and most of the side roads meandering off the paved highway are covered only in dirt. Most people don't wear seatbelts and don't have driving licenses, and the rates of motor vehicle accidents are astronomically high (almost always alcohol-related). There is land, land, land – vast and mostly untouched, with little agriculture (unlike the vast cornfields and other agricultural fields of much of Nebraska, South Dakota, Iowa, and the rest of the Midwest) – and dotted with trailers, far off along the dirt roads. In the towns, homes are clustered closer together, but generally not in neat suburban rhythms. They’re more scattered, makeshift in some undefinable way. There are gas stations and convenience stores and usually little else in most of the towns. Sometimes a health clinic. (Pine Ridge, of course, being the main exception, along with a couple of other ever so slightly big towns.)
People are mostly dark-skinned and look Indian. Many have fat around their middles (“apple-shaped”), putting them at high risk of strokes and heart attacks. Some men wear cowboy hats. Many people, men and women, have long hair. Some people are dusty and some are polished, professional-looking. Some stagger, unbalanced with alcohol. Some kids are barefoot, even in stores and other indoor public places. Some kids have plenty of toys and watch cable TV and DVDs and use computers. Many grandparents are the primary caretakers of their grandkids, with parents drunk or high or simply far away. Or passed away, from car accidents or suicide or violence.
There is a different feeling, too, on Pine Ridge. There is spirituality, and there is generosity, warmth, very close social and family ties. Spirituality and family and looking out for other people is prioritized (although of course not for everyone, especially when alcohol and drugs and abuse are present). People put lots and lots of effort into preparing for spiritual events, like sundances, sweat lodges, or memorials for those who have passed. There is a lot of humor and laid-backness. There is no rush. People are generally quite positive, and many people move forward no matter what tragedy or trouble falls next into their path. There is jealousy, too, petty or powerful and dark.
Pine Ridge does not feel commercialized. There are few commercial buildings. The souvenir shops that one would expect are absent. Perhaps, in addition to the presence of the sundances and sweats, individual spirituality, and a tenacity of tradition, Pine Ridge feels spiritual because it is not clustered with stores and bright lights and hotels and restaurants. Certainly it would be better if there was more employment and more money on the rez, but it doesn’t seem that the best way to do that would be to America-ize it, and clearly, there must be reasons why that has not happened. But maybe that’s just my sometimes anti-commercial feelings mapping themselves onto Pine Ridge. It does seem that people have a different spirit, philosophy, and attitude towards life than people outside of the reservation.
And finally, the rez is like a different country because much about the conditions is similar to those found in the third world. Not all homes have electricity, water, or sewage, though my impression is that at this point, most do have these basic amenities. Yet even if there is the physical option of heat, many don’t have the money for it in the cold winter. I am at a loss to understand how they survive. Commodity foods (free food given out by the BIA) are given on the 10th of each month, and food stamps are given out on the 1st, and they don’t always last the whole month. Perhaps that’s the point at which kids start to live off of Ramen noodles, although my impression is that sometimes that’s many kids’ main staple throughout the month – delicious, absolutely non-nutritious, and exceptionally cheap at something like a quarter per packet. Dirt roads can become impassable after rain or snow. I’m not quite sure how people get out then. Some people have cars and therefore don’t qualify for special transportation, but don’t have money for gas, and can’t get to the hospital for care. Then there is the fact that the hospital at times provides an unacceptably low level of care. In addition to the obesity and poverty, difficult access to health care leads to miserable health statistics and life expectancy that is below that found in some developing countries. There is one fire station in Pine Ridge. It is non-tribal and it is responsible only for putting out prairie fires, so when buildings burn, they can only watch and make sure that the fire doesn't spread.
Coming back from the Black Hills, I notice all of this again. I think people get used to the back and forth from the Pine Ridge world to the surrounding world, no longer jarred, but I’m a newbie and see it clearly, crystallized.
Very interesting observations...
ReplyDeleteJealousy toward..?
ReplyDelete