Taxation was a large part of the reason the colonialist sought and fought against the tyranny of England and won their independence. Now, natives are taxed not just federal, state, county, local, but tribal taxes, yes, there is such a thing. Do you really think natives are privileged? Surviving by treaty moneys is not privilege, it???s a legal binding compact, this why we have little or no lands left. Privilege is standing before a judge and given soft sentences compared to excessive sentencing given to Indians; privilege is walking into a store or restaurant without being ignored or treated with disgust because your skin is brown or black; privilege is given opportunity to colleges and institutions with the full blessings of those places; privilege is not receiving substandard healthcare and being told ???no???!
My point is this, where is it non-Indians are threatened by the prosperity and independence of Natives? More money is spent on prison inmates than Native Americans health care; native youth have the highest rate of suicide and addiction; and everyone still think we pay no taxes and get free government handouts. Many tribal members are not all covered and receive benefits from their respective tribes. Politics and nepotism are rampant and many tribes discriminate on their own people, but we still refuse to be victims. We participate in elections and become police officers, lawyers, and teachers while still maintaining songs and dances handed down centuries ago. Non-natives are stuck in this vacuum of compliance and rigid materialism by consumerism and capitalistic gain. Is there more to life than money and power? How about taking care of the earth? How about seeing that the earth is a living entity that is pissed right now and there has to be someone, namely the Indians that still see life in a planet that has been scraped, raped, bled, and burned. I have a lot of compassion and anger about the poor. Yes, I said poor. Not poor Indians, or poor blacks, just the poor. Economics is what gives us our common struggle. I know that non-Indians do not have an easy ride. They struggle like everyone else paying for college and working to make a better life for their children???s futures. Like non-Indians, natives also have a good ol??? boy system and are prone to corruption with anything involving money. I am not pro-gaming, but I am pro-community development. Unfortunately, we may need the first to attain the latter. I see tribes giving money to their state governments; send disaster relief moneys to communities, firefighting and assist in law enforcement and that, is where you make a community work and not fail. Across the board, there needs to be more alcohol and meth rehabilitation and fewer prisons built. Where are our priorities as Americans regardless of our race?
Taking Back the Land
Email To A Friend
Please fill in the following information and we'll email this link.
SPONSORED BY
Discuss