| Indian Problems: Shrinks, Lies, and Justice |
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by Bruce E. Levine The Piikani Sun, In The Greater Blackfoot Nation There is no doubt that alcohol abuse and other self-destructive behaviors are major problems among modern Indians. Is this a medical issue that will be solved by psychiatrists, psychologists, and social workers? Or is this a political issue that can be solved only by ending the oppression of Indians? There are of course many healthy and happy Indians, and they are used by the dominant culture as evidence that oppression is not related to self-destructive behaviors, but that is as silly as pointing to veterans who have survived war as evidence that war is not related to death. I am a clinical psychologist who is not only ashamed of America's historic oppression of Indians but who is also ashamed of the mental health profession. Blaming biochemistry or genetics for self-destructive behaviors has been a lucrative lie for drug companies and the rest of the mental health industry; it has also diverted the dominant culture from examining a dehumanizing society. Today, Indians will tell you that they know plenty of crazy or insane folks among them, but was this always the case? The 1916 book The Institutional Care of the Insane of the United States and Canada reports: "Dr. Lillybridge of Virginia, who was employed by the government to superintend the removal of Cherokee Indians in 1827-8-9, and who saw more than 20,000 Indians and inquired much about their diseases, informs us he never saw or heard of a case of insanity among them." Over the last two centuries, virtually all anthropological and epidemiological studies have shown a strong relationship between extended contact with European-American civilization and insanity or schizophrenia. Similarly, alcohol and drug abuse is most severe in traditional cultures which have been decimated by Western Civilization. One of the most widely used arguments for the genetic view of alcohol abuse is the "Oriental flush": the reddening after drinking that frequently characterizes those with Asian ancestry, including Indians. But individuals from Asian backgrounds who flush do not necessarily have more drinking problems than those who don't. "Flushing groups" have both the highest rates of alcoholism (e.g., Indians) and the lowest rates (e.g., Chinese). Rather than looking towards the biochemical and genetic, the answer is obvious to social psychologist Stanton Peele, author of Diseasing of America: "It would certainly seem that Eskimos' and Indians' abnegated state in America and their isolation from the American economic and achievement-oriented system inflate their alcoholism rates." I believe the dominant culture is receiving a certain kind of justice for both its lies and its oppression of Indians. For stolen land and genocidal practices, Indians have certainly not received political, legal, or economic justice. However, there is a justice being meted out for forcing Indians into become something they are not. Because of its denial and its failure to make amends for the violence of coercion, the dominant culture's karma is to repeat this with its own children. Increasingly, the dominant culture's "different" children, stubborn, bored, and shy kids (considered perfectly healthy in traditional cultures), are diagnosed with oppositional defiant disorder, attention deficit disorder, and social anxiety disorder -- and drugged into conformity. The dominant culture's karma for ignoring the resentment of Indians for forced conformity is that it now ignores its own children's resentment over similar coercion. And the dominant culture's justice is a death sentence. Its very roots -- family relationships -- are being destroyed by its children's resentment, which acts on the dominant culture like a slow-killing poison. Bruce E. Levine, Ph.D., is a psychologist and author of Commonsense Rebellion: Taking Back Your Life from Drugs, Shrinks, Corporations, and a World Gone Crazy. brucelevine.net The Piikani Sun Ookamootapi – the truth shall prevail An official source of cultural information about The Greater Blackfoot and other Indian Nations. Our Indian owned publication features articles about spirituality, music & book reviews, commentary, Indian persons making a difference, reasonable advertising rates, Glacier/Waterton International Peace Park views, governance issues surrounding Federal, State, and Tribal Governments, stories from the old ones of ancient times, outstanding photography, and primarily the many different and joyful ways in which mankind expresses the beauty of life from an Indian point of view. We are the only INDIAN OWNED publication within the Blackfeet Reservation that makes its way around the world. All Subscriptions to the Piikani Sun are $15.00 for 12 issues anywhere in the U.S. International rates: request quote via airmail delivery to your country. The Piikani Sun In the Greater Blackfoot Nation 59417-0390 Telephone: 406-338-2882 E-mail: blkfoot@3rivers.net The Piikani Sun as a periodic book? Ours is more than just a play on words. We publish our Piikani Sun as a periodic book since we periodically publish it as a book and not as a newspaper. It is a continuation of the last “book”, except that it has new exciting and thought provoking chapters. We do not want to label our Piikani Sun a newspaper because people throw the newspaper out once it has been read, or will not be read if it is past a certain “expiration” date. We believe we are the first to use the term and it is called the Piikani Sun because like the sun it continues to rise, and will never end. Every day is a new and beautiful day. And one more consideration: We are one of those publications out to change the world because of our dedication to the truth and with a positive attitude that the world and our communities can indeed be happy and healthy places. We are a periodic book put out by thinking Indians for thinking people. We are not your usual run of the mill “majority” newspaper put out by a press whose ownership is apt product be allegiance to a corporate line. You will want to keep our publication because its about the good things of life. We are about change for the better from the perspective of our ancestors and we make no bones about it. We take extreme pride in not being anyone’s minion. |
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