Sophomore journalism major
Christopher Columbus is frequently cited as the man who bravely sailed to the shores of North America and discovered the lands of our great nation. But by now, most of us know the real story.
We know the so-called “New World” was already inhabited by millions of people. We know Native American tribes were already established on this land, but Columbus and the waves of European immigrants that followed him felt entitled to call it their own. And we are aware of the atrocities that ensued.
Those of us who have taken basic U.S. history classes know about the near genocide of the Native American people, the later banishing of survivors onto reservations and the forced assimilation of Native American children into the New World culture. But this tragedy is not merely history. The injustice continues today, and it is extreme.
Native American reservations were purposely created on the least valuable plots of land in the country, placing them in the most destitute and remote locations. This has not changed, and people living there today are far away from basic necessities, sometimes up to 90 miles from the nearest town. This means miles from gas stations, hospitals, police stations and power sources, leaving many homes without electricity or running water. And out in the middle of nowhere, there are few economic opportunities.
Unemployment is extremely high, with some reservations reaching rates of more than 80 percent, according to The New York Times. Homelessness is rampant. Most of the Native American population lives below the federal poverty line.
Violent crime rates are more than two-and-a-half times higher than the national average. Murder, rape and sexual assault are more common on reservations than anywhere in the country, except perhaps for a few of America’s most violent cities. One in three Native American women experience rape or attempted rape, and justice is rarely served. The Justice Department turns down half of the murder cases and nearly two-thirds of the sexual assault cases it receives from reservations.
Violence and domestic abuse are fueled by endemic alcoholism. Alcoholism contributes to higher rates of homicide, suicide and abuse as well as fetal alcohol syndrome and infant mortality. The frequency of alcohol-related deaths on reservations is more than three times the percentage for the general population.
Many young people don’t graduate from high school, and high school dropout rates on some reservations reach 70 percent. This does not bode well for the future and a long, healthy life is not to be expected when life expectancies are less than the national average.
This is an unavoidable fate for most Native Americans. History placed them in these desolate locations, and now, in the 21st century, they are trapped. They are isolated from the outside world, without access to quality education; there are few promising opportunities left for them off the reservation.
On these forgotten segments of land, these horrific issues go unnoticed and unresolved. America has abandoned its own indigenous people. It is time to start making things right.
It is up to us to take notice. Volunteers can make a huge difference in improving the quality of life on reservations by building schools, fixing up houses, providing access to electricity, improving health services and helping boost education. There is a wide variety of opportunities for students at this university to volunteer abroad, and with enough interest, we could establish domestic programs that would bring students to work on reservations. A program like this would give students the opportunity to help improve conditions on reservations while also making these issues more visible to the nation. Many of the more serious issues require federal intervention, and that will not happen unless our leaders start paying attention.
Unfortunately, we cannot change history. But we can change the present, and hopefully, reshape the future.
Madeleine List is a sophomore journalism major. She can be reached at opinionumdbk@gmail.com.
