Suicide Crisis Among Native American Youth Prompts Federal Action

[Claudette]

The Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, home to the Oglala Sioux Tribe in South Dakota, is in a state of crisis. Over the past year, 14 school-age children on the reservation have killed themselves.

At the time of their suicides, four of those children were attending Pine Ridge School. On Wednesday, the U.S. Department of Education announced that the Bureau of Indian Education school, which has some 800 K-12 students, has received $218,000 in emergency funds to help its students deal with that trauma.

The school requested the grant money through the Education Department’s Project SERV (School Emergency Response to Violence). With the funds, Pine Ridge will be able to hire an additional counselor and social worker for the next 12 months, better implement a Lakota-based healing program and bring in cultural teachers to provide monthly lessons on healing processes, according to information provided by the Bureau of Indian Affairs.

The 183 Bureau of Indian Education schools nationwide, which are overseen by the federal government, face a number of daunting challenges. Suicide rates among young Native Americans are disproportionately high, while high school graduation rates are disproportionately low. Many BIE school facilities are old and in poor condition.

Between August 2014 and April 2015, Pine Ridge School saw a "significant increase" in suicide attempts and counseling referrals, according to the Education Department. But currently, the school has only two counselors on staff, said Nedra Darling, a spokesperson for the Department of the Interior.

"During the end of the School Year 2014-2015 the mood was somewhat in a mourning state," Darling wrote HuffPost, adding that school personnel were spending "a great amount of time" providing mental health counseling to students and staff.

"However, as graduation approached the mood lifted and many believe it is time to move forward to teach these children to celebrate life," Darling wrote.

The Education Department touted the grant as part of the Obama administration's overall push to improve life for Native youth. The White House launched its Generation Indigenous initiative in February in an effort to remove barriers for this population through new investments and opportunities to engage.

“We are heartbroken about the tragic loss of life and are committed to working with the Pine Ridge community as it heals. These funds will help Pine Ridge School’s continued efforts to restore the learning environment in the face of these great tragedies,” said William Mendoza, director of the White House Initiative on American Indian and Alaska Native Education, in Wednesday's press release. “This Administration is committed to supporting tribes in their work to meet the needs of their students. We all must do more to address the challenges across Indian Country.”

John Yellow Bird Steele, president of the Oglala Sioux Tribe, declared a state of emergency on the reservation in response to the youth suicides in February.

More: Native American School Mourning 4 Student Suicides Gets Emergency Federal Aid

Poverty and suicide are common among Native Americans. They aren't all rich Injuns with casinos.

The reservation is its own country. They have control over who comes and goes. They even have they're own police force

Seems to me the Sioux should be able to handle they're own problems with out outside help.

Your reasoning is as flawed as your spelling.

My reasoning sure beats the hell out of yours. Especially since your the one always harping on being and Native American and how proud you are of it and how the white man has fucked you over.

Yet here you are expecting the white man to roll on into the res and save the day.

Funny how NOW you decide you NEED the white man since apparently Native Americans are suicide prone.

Oh and you can kiss my ass.

 

[Lonestar_logic]

The Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, home to the Oglala Sioux Tribe in South Dakota, is in a state of crisis. Over the past year, 14 school-age children on the reservation have killed themselves.

At the time of their suicides, four of those children were attending Pine Ridge School. On Wednesday, the U.S. Department of Education announced that the Bureau of Indian Education school, which has some 800 K-12 students, has received $218,000 in emergency funds to help its students deal with that trauma.

The school requested the grant money through the Education Department’s Project SERV (School Emergency Response to Violence). With the funds, Pine Ridge will be able to hire an additional counselor and social worker for the next 12 months, better implement a Lakota-based healing program and bring in cultural teachers to provide monthly lessons on healing processes, according to information provided by the Bureau of Indian Affairs.

The 183 Bureau of Indian Education schools nationwide, which are overseen by the federal government, face a number of daunting challenges. Suicide rates among young Native Americans are disproportionately high, while high school graduation rates are disproportionately low. Many BIE school facilities are old and in poor condition.

Between August 2014 and April 2015, Pine Ridge School saw a "significant increase" in suicide attempts and counseling referrals, according to the Education Department. But currently, the school has only two counselors on staff, said Nedra Darling, a spokesperson for the Department of the Interior.

"During the end of the School Year 2014-2015 the mood was somewhat in a mourning state," Darling wrote HuffPost, adding that school personnel were spending "a great amount of time" providing mental health counseling to students and staff.

"However, as graduation approached the mood lifted and many believe it is time to move forward to teach these children to celebrate life," Darling wrote.

The Education Department touted the grant as part of the Obama administration's overall push to improve life for Native youth. The White House launched its Generation Indigenous initiative in February in an effort to remove barriers for this population through new investments and opportunities to engage.

“We are heartbroken about the tragic loss of life and are committed to working with the Pine Ridge community as it heals. These funds will help Pine Ridge School’s continued efforts to restore the learning environment in the face of these great tragedies,” said William Mendoza, director of the White House Initiative on American Indian and Alaska Native Education, in Wednesday's press release. “This Administration is committed to supporting tribes in their work to meet the needs of their students. We all must do more to address the challenges across Indian Country.”

John Yellow Bird Steele, president of the Oglala Sioux Tribe, declared a state of emergency on the reservation in response to the youth suicides in February.

More: Native American School Mourning 4 Student Suicides Gets Emergency Federal Aid

Poverty and suicide are common among Native Americans. They aren't all rich Injuns with casinos.

Very sad.

Why is it sad? Evolution strains out the backward the retarded and the idiots. It's natures way of cleaning the gene pool.

You know--or probably you don't because you are obviously very intellectually limited--those who are lacking in sensibility and self esteem are those who are the biggest bullies: which means that's you buddy.

The social problems of the Native Americans are complex and something that goes back to the conquering of this country by European settlers, invaders actually. Just because you are where you are does not mean it has anything to do with you as an individual human being being superior to anyone: it's very clear you are not. If you had a brain of any worth, you would be able to put this situation in perspective and with other intelligent and perceptive people, try to think of a solution to the problem.

But, indeed and truly, you are a knuckle dragger and incapable of seeing anything past your big fat nose. The pathetic one, the one on the way out as far as evolution is concernedd is you. Yep. The Native Americans are evolving and will evolve, though it is tough, but they are in the process. You have had every opportunity to be a better person, but you are nowhere near being one.

You are the one who is "backward ... retarded and [an] idiot."

The old "blame whitey" excuse.

Why are they not held accountable for their own plight? Their poverty and poor health is something that each one can overcome through hard work and dedication. They are so many opportunities in this country and yet they choose to remain slaves (dependents) to the government. Blacks are killing white on a scale five times worse than whites killing blacks but it's whitey's fault.

You talk about being retarded and an idiot. I would imagine your looking into a mirror while saying that.

 

[Lakhota]

The Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, home to the Oglala Sioux Tribe in South Dakota, is in a state of crisis. Over the past year, 14 school-age children on the reservation have killed themselves.

At the time of their suicides, four of those children were attending Pine Ridge School. On Wednesday, the U.S. Department of Education announced that the Bureau of Indian Education school, which has some 800 K-12 students, has received $218,000 in emergency funds to help its students deal with that trauma.

The school requested the grant money through the Education Department’s Project SERV (School Emergency Response to Violence). With the funds, Pine Ridge will be able to hire an additional counselor and social worker for the next 12 months, better implement a Lakota-based healing program and bring in cultural teachers to provide monthly lessons on healing processes, according to information provided by the Bureau of Indian Affairs.

The 183 Bureau of Indian Education schools nationwide, which are overseen by the federal government, face a number of daunting challenges. Suicide rates among young Native Americans are disproportionately high, while high school graduation rates are disproportionately low. Many BIE school facilities are old and in poor condition.

Between August 2014 and April 2015, Pine Ridge School saw a "significant increase" in suicide attempts and counseling referrals, according to the Education Department. But currently, the school has only two counselors on staff, said Nedra Darling, a spokesperson for the Department of the Interior.

"During the end of the School Year 2014-2015 the mood was somewhat in a mourning state," Darling wrote HuffPost, adding that school personnel were spending "a great amount of time" providing mental health counseling to students and staff.

"However, as graduation approached the mood lifted and many believe it is time to move forward to teach these children to celebrate life," Darling wrote.

The Education Department touted the grant as part of the Obama administration's overall push to improve life for Native youth. The White House launched its Generation Indigenous initiative in February in an effort to remove barriers for this population through new investments and opportunities to engage.

“We are heartbroken about the tragic loss of life and are committed to working with the Pine Ridge community as it heals. These funds will help Pine Ridge School’s continued efforts to restore the learning environment in the face of these great tragedies,” said William Mendoza, director of the White House Initiative on American Indian and Alaska Native Education, in Wednesday's press release. “This Administration is committed to supporting tribes in their work to meet the needs of their students. We all must do more to address the challenges across Indian Country.”

John Yellow Bird Steele, president of the Oglala Sioux Tribe, declared a state of emergency on the reservation in response to the youth suicides in February.

More: Native American School Mourning 4 Student Suicides Gets Emergency Federal Aid

Poverty and suicide are common among Native Americans. They aren't all rich Injuns with casinos.

Very sad.

Why is it sad? Evolution strains out the backward the retarded and the idiots. It's natures way of cleaning the gene pool.

You know--or probably you don't because you are obviously very intellectually limited--those who are lacking in sensibility and self esteem are those who are the biggest bullies: which means that's you buddy.

The social problems of the Native Americans are complex and something that goes back to the conquering of this country by European settlers, invaders actually. Just because you are where you are does not mean it has anything to do with you as an individual human being being superior to anyone: it's very clear you are not. If you had a brain of any worth, you would be able to put this situation in perspective and with other intelligent and perceptive people, try to think of a solution to the problem.

But, indeed and truly, you are a knuckle dragger and incapable of seeing anything past your big fat nose. The pathetic one, the one on the way out as far as evolution is concernedd is you. Yep. The Native Americans are evolving and will evolve, though it is tough, but they are in the process. You have had every opportunity to be a better person, but you are nowhere near being one.

You are the one who is "backward ... retarded and [an] idiot."

The old "blame whitey" excuse.

Why are they not held accountable for their own plight? Their poverty and poor health is something that each one can overcome through hard work and dedication. They are so many opportunities in this country and yet they choose to remain slaves (dependents) to the government. Blacks are killing white on a scale five times worse than whites killing blacks but it's whitey's fault.

You talk about being retarded and an idiot. I would imagine your looking into a mirror while saying that.

You lie!

And given the relative population percentages of whites and blacks, blacks are actually more likely to be interracially murdered by a white person than vice-versa. After all, as for homicides where the race of the offender is known, 447 B-W murders as a share of the white community is 2/10,000ths of 1 percent (0.0002) of all whites killed by blacks, which is 1 in every 500,000 white people who will be killed by a black person in a given year; meanwhile, 218 W-B homicides as a share of the black community is 5.5/10,000ths of 1 percent (0.00055). So although interracial homicide is incredibly rare in either direction, any given black person is more than 2.75 times as likely as any given white person to be interracially murdered, with roughly 1 in every 180,000 black persons being killed by a white person in a given year.

Much More: How the Right Manipulates White Fear With Bogus Data

FBI Expanded Homicide Data Table 6

 

[Derideo_Te]

education is a liberal value.
for sure

Not if you are a minority, then liberals don't care about education.

you have that butt backwards. but if it makes you feel better about yourself.....

When Obama became president he immediately cut funds to charter schools. Then had to stop his actions, because of the outrage from minorities. If he cared why did he attended to do it?

that would be president obama to you.

i'm not a fan of charter schools. they suck money out of the public education system.

but they also took money away from regular schools, not just charter schools. that's what happens when the prior guy runs two wars on our credit card while cutting taxes during wartime -- first time that was done by any leader in recorded history.

now what were you saying?

Obama doesn't deserve the opportunity to wash my underwear. Charter schools work, and they take money out of a failing school system. A win, win.

Onus is on you to prove that charter schools succeed where public schools can't.

 

[jknowgood]

Not if you are a minority, then liberals don't care about education.

you have that butt backwards. but if it makes you feel better about yourself.....

When Obama became president he immediately cut funds to charter schools. Then had to stop his actions, because of the outrage from minorities. If he cared why did he attended to do it?

that would be president obama to you.

i'm not a fan of charter schools. they suck money out of the public education system.

but they also took money away from regular schools, not just charter schools. that's what happens when the prior guy runs two wars on our credit card while cutting taxes during wartime -- first time that was done by any leader in recorded history.

now what were you saying?

Obama doesn't deserve the opportunity to wash my underwear. Charter schools work, and they take money out of a failing school system. A win, win.

View attachment 43110

Onus is on you to prove that charter schools succeed where public schools can't.

Public schools still graduate students that can't read. Charter schools around here are a great success compared to public schools.

 

[jillian]

education is a liberal value.
for sure

Not if you are a minority, then liberals don't care about education.

you have that butt backwards. but if it makes you feel better about yourself.....

When Obama became president he immediately cut funds to charter schools. Then had to stop his actions, because of the outrage from minorities. If he cared why did he attended to do it?

that would be president obama to you.

i'm not a fan of charter schools. they suck money out of the public education system.

but they also took money away from regular schools, not just charter schools. that's what happens when the prior guy runs two wars on our credit card while cutting taxes during wartime -- first time that was done by any leader in recorded history.

now what were you saying?

Obama doesn't deserve the opportunity to wash my underwear. Charter schools work, and they take money out of a failing school system. A win, win.

spoken like a true uneducated braindead twit

 

[Skull Pilot]

The Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, home to the Oglala Sioux Tribe in South Dakota, is in a state of crisis. Over the past year, 14 school-age children on the reservation have killed themselves.

At the time of their suicides, four of those children were attending Pine Ridge School. On Wednesday, the U.S. Department of Education announced that the Bureau of Indian Education school, which has some 800 K-12 students, has received $218,000 in emergency funds to help its students deal with that trauma.

The school requested the grant money through the Education Department’s Project SERV (School Emergency Response to Violence). With the funds, Pine Ridge will be able to hire an additional counselor and social worker for the next 12 months, better implement a Lakota-based healing program and bring in cultural teachers to provide monthly lessons on healing processes, according to information provided by the Bureau of Indian Affairs.

The 183 Bureau of Indian Education schools nationwide, which are overseen by the federal government, face a number of daunting challenges. Suicide rates among young Native Americans are disproportionately high, while high school graduation rates are disproportionately low. Many BIE school facilities are old and in poor condition.

Between August 2014 and April 2015, Pine Ridge School saw a "significant increase" in suicide attempts and counseling referrals, according to the Education Department. But currently, the school has only two counselors on staff, said Nedra Darling, a spokesperson for the Department of the Interior.

"During the end of the School Year 2014-2015 the mood was somewhat in a mourning state," Darling wrote HuffPost, adding that school personnel were spending "a great amount of time" providing mental health counseling to students and staff.

"However, as graduation approached the mood lifted and many believe it is time to move forward to teach these children to celebrate life," Darling wrote.

The Education Department touted the grant as part of the Obama administration's overall push to improve life for Native youth. The White House launched its Generation Indigenous initiative in February in an effort to remove barriers for this population through new investments and opportunities to engage.

“We are heartbroken about the tragic loss of life and are committed to working with the Pine Ridge community as it heals. These funds will help Pine Ridge School’s continued efforts to restore the learning environment in the face of these great tragedies,” said William Mendoza, director of the White House Initiative on American Indian and Alaska Native Education, in Wednesday's press release. “This Administration is committed to supporting tribes in their work to meet the needs of their students. We all must do more to address the challenges across Indian Country.”

John Yellow Bird Steele, president of the Oglala Sioux Tribe, declared a state of emergency on the reservation in response to the youth suicides in February.

More: Native American School Mourning 4 Student Suicides Gets Emergency Federal Aid

Poverty and suicide are common among Native Americans. They aren't all rich Injuns with casinos.

Yeah just what Native Americans need is more federal action.

It was the federal government that put them where they are today.

 

[Claudette]

The Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, home to the Oglala Sioux Tribe in South Dakota, is in a state of crisis. Over the past year, 14 school-age children on the reservation have killed themselves.

At the time of their suicides, four of those children were attending Pine Ridge School. On Wednesday, the U.S. Department of Education announced that the Bureau of Indian Education school, which has some 800 K-12 students, has received $218,000 in emergency funds to help its students deal with that trauma.

The school requested the grant money through the Education Department’s Project SERV (School Emergency Response to Violence). With the funds, Pine Ridge will be able to hire an additional counselor and social worker for the next 12 months, better implement a Lakota-based healing program and bring in cultural teachers to provide monthly lessons on healing processes, according to information provided by the Bureau of Indian Affairs.

The 183 Bureau of Indian Education schools nationwide, which are overseen by the federal government, face a number of daunting challenges. Suicide rates among young Native Americans are disproportionately high, while high school graduation rates are disproportionately low. Many BIE school facilities are old and in poor condition.

Between August 2014 and April 2015, Pine Ridge School saw a "significant increase" in suicide attempts and counseling referrals, according to the Education Department. But currently, the school has only two counselors on staff, said Nedra Darling, a spokesperson for the Department of the Interior.

"During the end of the School Year 2014-2015 the mood was somewhat in a mourning state," Darling wrote HuffPost, adding that school personnel were spending "a great amount of time" providing mental health counseling to students and staff.

"However, as graduation approached the mood lifted and many believe it is time to move forward to teach these children to celebrate life," Darling wrote.

The Education Department touted the grant as part of the Obama administration's overall push to improve life for Native youth. The White House launched its Generation Indigenous initiative in February in an effort to remove barriers for this population through new investments and opportunities to engage.

“We are heartbroken about the tragic loss of life and are committed to working with the Pine Ridge community as it heals. These funds will help Pine Ridge School’s continued efforts to restore the learning environment in the face of these great tragedies,” said William Mendoza, director of the White House Initiative on American Indian and Alaska Native Education, in Wednesday's press release. “This Administration is committed to supporting tribes in their work to meet the needs of their students. We all must do more to address the challenges across Indian Country.”

John Yellow Bird Steele, president of the Oglala Sioux Tribe, declared a state of emergency on the reservation in response to the youth suicides in February.

More: Native American School Mourning 4 Student Suicides Gets Emergency Federal Aid

Poverty and suicide are common among Native Americans. They aren't all rich Injuns with casinos.

Yeah just what Native Americans need is more federal action.

It was the federal government that put them where they are today.

Yup and you notice most of them stay right there and collect the federal paycheck.

No reason they can't leave. They stay so one must assume they like that life.

 

[Derideo_Te]

you have that butt backwards. but if it makes you feel better about yourself.....

When Obama became president he immediately cut funds to charter schools. Then had to stop his actions, because of the outrage from minorities. If he cared why did he attended to do it?

that would be president obama to you.

i'm not a fan of charter schools. they suck money out of the public education system.

but they also took money away from regular schools, not just charter schools. that's what happens when the prior guy runs two wars on our credit card while cutting taxes during wartime -- first time that was done by any leader in recorded history.

now what were you saying?

Obama doesn't deserve the opportunity to wash my underwear. Charter schools work, and they take money out of a failing school system. A win, win.

View attachment 43110

Onus is on you to prove that charter schools succeed where public schools can't.

Public schools still graduate students that can't read. Charter schools around here are a great success compared to public schools.

Still can't produce any proof, can you?

 

[jknowgood]

Not if you are a minority, then liberals don't care about education.

you have that butt backwards. but if it makes you feel better about yourself.....

When Obama became president he immediately cut funds to charter schools. Then had to stop his actions, because of the outrage from minorities. If he cared why did he attended to do it?

that would be president obama to you.

i'm not a fan of charter schools. they suck money out of the public education system.

but they also took money away from regular schools, not just charter schools. that's what happens when the prior guy runs two wars on our credit card while cutting taxes during wartime -- first time that was done by any leader in recorded history.

now what were you saying?

Obama doesn't deserve the opportunity to wash my underwear. Charter schools work, and they take money out of a failing school system. A win, win.

spoken like a true uneducated braindead twit

Still doesn't change the fact he couldn't even lie his way in to clean my underwear. Lol

 

[Lakhota]

The Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, home to the Oglala Sioux Tribe in South Dakota, is in a state of crisis. Over the past year, 14 school-age children on the reservation have killed themselves.

At the time of their suicides, four of those children were attending Pine Ridge School. On Wednesday, the U.S. Department of Education announced that the Bureau of Indian Education school, which has some 800 K-12 students, has received $218,000 in emergency funds to help its students deal with that trauma.

The school requested the grant money through the Education Department’s Project SERV (School Emergency Response to Violence). With the funds, Pine Ridge will be able to hire an additional counselor and social worker for the next 12 months, better implement a Lakota-based healing program and bring in cultural teachers to provide monthly lessons on healing processes, according to information provided by the Bureau of Indian Affairs.

The 183 Bureau of Indian Education schools nationwide, which are overseen by the federal government, face a number of daunting challenges. Suicide rates among young Native Americans are disproportionately high, while high school graduation rates are disproportionately low. Many BIE school facilities are old and in poor condition.

Between August 2014 and April 2015, Pine Ridge School saw a "significant increase" in suicide attempts and counseling referrals, according to the Education Department. But currently, the school has only two counselors on staff, said Nedra Darling, a spokesperson for the Department of the Interior.

"During the end of the School Year 2014-2015 the mood was somewhat in a mourning state," Darling wrote HuffPost, adding that school personnel were spending "a great amount of time" providing mental health counseling to students and staff.

"However, as graduation approached the mood lifted and many believe it is time to move forward to teach these children to celebrate life," Darling wrote.

The Education Department touted the grant as part of the Obama administration's overall push to improve life for Native youth. The White House launched its Generation Indigenous initiative in February in an effort to remove barriers for this population through new investments and opportunities to engage.

“We are heartbroken about the tragic loss of life and are committed to working with the Pine Ridge community as it heals. These funds will help Pine Ridge School’s continued efforts to restore the learning environment in the face of these great tragedies,” said William Mendoza, director of the White House Initiative on American Indian and Alaska Native Education, in Wednesday's press release. “This Administration is committed to supporting tribes in their work to meet the needs of their students. We all must do more to address the challenges across Indian Country.”

John Yellow Bird Steele, president of the Oglala Sioux Tribe, declared a state of emergency on the reservation in response to the youth suicides in February.

More: Native American School Mourning 4 Student Suicides Gets Emergency Federal Aid

Poverty and suicide are common among Native Americans. They aren't all rich Injuns with casinos.

Yeah just what Native Americans need is more federal action.

It was the federal government that put them where they are today.

Yep, that's pretty much the original crux of the problem - and current the solution.

 

[Esmeralda]

The Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, home to the Oglala Sioux Tribe in South Dakota, is in a state of crisis. Over the past year, 14 school-age children on the reservation have killed themselves.

At the time of their suicides, four of those children were attending Pine Ridge School. On Wednesday, the U.S. Department of Education announced that the Bureau of Indian Education school, which has some 800 K-12 students, has received $218,000 in emergency funds to help its students deal with that trauma.

The school requested the grant money through the Education Department’s Project SERV (School Emergency Response to Violence). With the funds, Pine Ridge will be able to hire an additional counselor and social worker for the next 12 months, better implement a Lakota-based healing program and bring in cultural teachers to provide monthly lessons on healing processes, according to information provided by the Bureau of Indian Affairs.

The 183 Bureau of Indian Education schools nationwide, which are overseen by the federal government, face a number of daunting challenges. Suicide rates among young Native Americans are disproportionately high, while high school graduation rates are disproportionately low. Many BIE school facilities are old and in poor condition.

Between August 2014 and April 2015, Pine Ridge School saw a "significant increase" in suicide attempts and counseling referrals, according to the Education Department. But currently, the school has only two counselors on staff, said Nedra Darling, a spokesperson for the Department of the Interior.

"During the end of the School Year 2014-2015 the mood was somewhat in a mourning state," Darling wrote HuffPost, adding that school personnel were spending "a great amount of time" providing mental health counseling to students and staff.

"However, as graduation approached the mood lifted and many believe it is time to move forward to teach these children to celebrate life," Darling wrote.

The Education Department touted the grant as part of the Obama administration's overall push to improve life for Native youth. The White House launched its Generation Indigenous initiative in February in an effort to remove barriers for this population through new investments and opportunities to engage.

“We are heartbroken about the tragic loss of life and are committed to working with the Pine Ridge community as it heals. These funds will help Pine Ridge School’s continued efforts to restore the learning environment in the face of these great tragedies,” said William Mendoza, director of the White House Initiative on American Indian and Alaska Native Education, in Wednesday's press release. “This Administration is committed to supporting tribes in their work to meet the needs of their students. We all must do more to address the challenges across Indian Country.”

John Yellow Bird Steele, president of the Oglala Sioux Tribe, declared a state of emergency on the reservation in response to the youth suicides in February.

More: Native American School Mourning 4 Student Suicides Gets Emergency Federal Aid

Poverty and suicide are common among Native Americans. They aren't all rich Injuns with casinos.

Very sad.

Why is it sad? Evolution strains out the backward the retarded and the idiots. It's natures way of cleaning the gene pool.

You know--or probably you don't because you are obviously very intellectually limited--those who are lacking in sensibility and self esteem are those who are the biggest bullies: which means that's you buddy.

The social problems of the Native Americans are complex and something that goes back to the conquering of this country by European settlers, invaders actually. Just because you are where you are does not mean it has anything to do with you as an individual human being being superior to anyone: it's very clear you are not. If you had a brain of any worth, you would be able to put this situation in perspective and with other intelligent and perceptive people, try to think of a solution to the problem.

But, indeed and truly, you are a knuckle dragger and incapable of seeing anything past your big fat nose. The pathetic one, the one on the way out as far as evolution is concernedd is you. Yep. The Native Americans are evolving and will evolve, though it is tough, but they are in the process. You have had every opportunity to be a better person, but you are nowhere near being one.

You are the one who is "backward ... retarded and [an] idiot."

The old "blame whitey" excuse.

Why are they not held accountable for their own plight? Their poverty and poor health is something that each one can overcome through hard work and dedication. They are so many opportunities in this country and yet they choose to remain slaves (dependents) to the government. Blacks are killing white on a scale five times worse than whites killing blacks but it's whitey's fault.

You talk about being retarded and an idiot. I would imagine your looking into a mirror while saying that.

Okay, so it is all their problem, their fault? They should fix the problem themselves? And, of course, your stance is not racist. You believe that the white people in the Ozarks are just as bad as the Native Americans and the blacks in the inner cities at being lazy and dumb and living off the government instead of fixing the desperate poverty in which they live?

We have severe poverty in America, in the inner city ghettos, on the reservation, and in the Ozarks. The poverty in the Ozarks is as bad as in the urban ghettos and on the reservations. The use of government assistance in the Ozarks is as high as in the inner cities. These people in the Ozarks are white, overwhelmingly white. Is it your opinion that they too are responsible for their own plight? Is it also your opinion that they should be left to take care of their problem on their own? Is it your position that their situation is their own fault? That "there are so many opportunities in this country and yet they remain slaves (dependents) to the government"?

 

[Lakhota]

Google "reservation poverty"...

 

[Lonestar_logic]

The Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, home to the Oglala Sioux Tribe in South Dakota, is in a state of crisis. Over the past year, 14 school-age children on the reservation have killed themselves.

At the time of their suicides, four of those children were attending Pine Ridge School. On Wednesday, the U.S. Department of Education announced that the Bureau of Indian Education school, which has some 800 K-12 students, has received $218,000 in emergency funds to help its students deal with that trauma.

The school requested the grant money through the Education Department’s Project SERV (School Emergency Response to Violence). With the funds, Pine Ridge will be able to hire an additional counselor and social worker for the next 12 months, better implement a Lakota-based healing program and bring in cultural teachers to provide monthly lessons on healing processes, according to information provided by the Bureau of Indian Affairs.

The 183 Bureau of Indian Education schools nationwide, which are overseen by the federal government, face a number of daunting challenges. Suicide rates among young Native Americans are disproportionately high, while high school graduation rates are disproportionately low. Many BIE school facilities are old and in poor condition.

Between August 2014 and April 2015, Pine Ridge School saw a "significant increase" in suicide attempts and counseling referrals, according to the Education Department. But currently, the school has only two counselors on staff, said Nedra Darling, a spokesperson for the Department of the Interior.

"During the end of the School Year 2014-2015 the mood was somewhat in a mourning state," Darling wrote HuffPost, adding that school personnel were spending "a great amount of time" providing mental health counseling to students and staff.

"However, as graduation approached the mood lifted and many believe it is time to move forward to teach these children to celebrate life," Darling wrote.

The Education Department touted the grant as part of the Obama administration's overall push to improve life for Native youth. The White House launched its Generation Indigenous initiative in February in an effort to remove barriers for this population through new investments and opportunities to engage.

“We are heartbroken about the tragic loss of life and are committed to working with the Pine Ridge community as it heals. These funds will help Pine Ridge School’s continued efforts to restore the learning environment in the face of these great tragedies,” said William Mendoza, director of the White House Initiative on American Indian and Alaska Native Education, in Wednesday's press release. “This Administration is committed to supporting tribes in their work to meet the needs of their students. We all must do more to address the challenges across Indian Country.”

John Yellow Bird Steele, president of the Oglala Sioux Tribe, declared a state of emergency on the reservation in response to the youth suicides in February.

More: Native American School Mourning 4 Student Suicides Gets Emergency Federal Aid

Poverty and suicide are common among Native Americans. They aren't all rich Injuns with casinos.

Very sad.

Why is it sad? Evolution strains out the backward the retarded and the idiots. It's natures way of cleaning the gene pool.

You know--or probably you don't because you are obviously very intellectually limited--those who are lacking in sensibility and self esteem are those who are the biggest bullies: which means that's you buddy.

The social problems of the Native Americans are complex and something that goes back to the conquering of this country by European settlers, invaders actually. Just because you are where you are does not mean it has anything to do with you as an individual human being being superior to anyone: it's very clear you are not. If you had a brain of any worth, you would be able to put this situation in perspective and with other intelligent and perceptive people, try to think of a solution to the problem.

But, indeed and truly, you are a knuckle dragger and incapable of seeing anything past your big fat nose. The pathetic one, the one on the way out as far as evolution is concernedd is you. Yep. The Native Americans are evolving and will evolve, though it is tough, but they are in the process. You have had every opportunity to be a better person, but you are nowhere near being one.

You are the one who is "backward ... retarded and [an] idiot."

The old "blame whitey" excuse.

Why are they not held accountable for their own plight? Their poverty and poor health is something that each one can overcome through hard work and dedication. They are so many opportunities in this country and yet they choose to remain slaves (dependents) to the government. Blacks are killing white on a scale five times worse than whites killing blacks but it's whitey's fault.

You talk about being retarded and an idiot. I would imagine your looking into a mirror while saying that.

You lie!

And given the relative population percentages of whites and blacks, blacks are actually more likely to be interracially murdered by a white person than vice-versa. After all, as for homicides where the race of the offender is known, 447 B-W murders as a share of the white community is 2/10,000ths of 1 percent (0.0002) of all whites killed by blacks, which is 1 in every 500,000 white people who will be killed by a black person in a given year; meanwhile, 218 W-B homicides as a share of the black community is 5.5/10,000ths of 1 percent (0.00055). So although interracial homicide is incredibly rare in either direction, any given black person is more than 2.75 times as likely as any given white person to be interracially murdered, with roughly 1 in every 180,000 black persons being killed by a white person in a given year.

Much More: How the Right Manipulates White Fear With Bogus Data

FBI Expanded Homicide Data Table 6

http://www.bjs.gov/content/pub/pdf/htus8008.pdf

 

[Lonestar_logic]

The Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, home to the Oglala Sioux Tribe in South Dakota, is in a state of crisis. Over the past year, 14 school-age children on the reservation have killed themselves.

At the time of their suicides, four of those children were attending Pine Ridge School. On Wednesday, the U.S. Department of Education announced that the Bureau of Indian Education school, which has some 800 K-12 students, has received $218,000 in emergency funds to help its students deal with that trauma.

The school requested the grant money through the Education Department’s Project SERV (School Emergency Response to Violence). With the funds, Pine Ridge will be able to hire an additional counselor and social worker for the next 12 months, better implement a Lakota-based healing program and bring in cultural teachers to provide monthly lessons on healing processes, according to information provided by the Bureau of Indian Affairs.

The 183 Bureau of Indian Education schools nationwide, which are overseen by the federal government, face a number of daunting challenges. Suicide rates among young Native Americans are disproportionately high, while high school graduation rates are disproportionately low. Many BIE school facilities are old and in poor condition.

Between August 2014 and April 2015, Pine Ridge School saw a "significant increase" in suicide attempts and counseling referrals, according to the Education Department. But currently, the school has only two counselors on staff, said Nedra Darling, a spokesperson for the Department of the Interior.

"During the end of the School Year 2014-2015 the mood was somewhat in a mourning state," Darling wrote HuffPost, adding that school personnel were spending "a great amount of time" providing mental health counseling to students and staff.

"However, as graduation approached the mood lifted and many believe it is time to move forward to teach these children to celebrate life," Darling wrote.

The Education Department touted the grant as part of the Obama administration's overall push to improve life for Native youth. The White House launched its Generation Indigenous initiative in February in an effort to remove barriers for this population through new investments and opportunities to engage.

“We are heartbroken about the tragic loss of life and are committed to working with the Pine Ridge community as it heals. These funds will help Pine Ridge School’s continued efforts to restore the learning environment in the face of these great tragedies,” said William Mendoza, director of the White House Initiative on American Indian and Alaska Native Education, in Wednesday's press release. “This Administration is committed to supporting tribes in their work to meet the needs of their students. We all must do more to address the challenges across Indian Country.”

John Yellow Bird Steele, president of the Oglala Sioux Tribe, declared a state of emergency on the reservation in response to the youth suicides in February.

More: Native American School Mourning 4 Student Suicides Gets Emergency Federal Aid

Poverty and suicide are common among Native Americans. They aren't all rich Injuns with casinos.

Very sad.

Why is it sad? Evolution strains out the backward the retarded and the idiots. It's natures way of cleaning the gene pool.

You know--or probably you don't because you are obviously very intellectually limited--those who are lacking in sensibility and self esteem are those who are the biggest bullies: which means that's you buddy.

The social problems of the Native Americans are complex and something that goes back to the conquering of this country by European settlers, invaders actually. Just because you are where you are does not mean it has anything to do with you as an individual human being being superior to anyone: it's very clear you are not. If you had a brain of any worth, you would be able to put this situation in perspective and with other intelligent and perceptive people, try to think of a solution to the problem.

But, indeed and truly, you are a knuckle dragger and incapable of seeing anything past your big fat nose. The pathetic one, the one on the way out as far as evolution is concernedd is you. Yep. The Native Americans are evolving and will evolve, though it is tough, but they are in the process. You have had every opportunity to be a better person, but you are nowhere near being one.

You are the one who is "backward ... retarded and [an] idiot."

The old "blame whitey" excuse.

Why are they not held accountable for their own plight? Their poverty and poor health is something that each one can overcome through hard work and dedication. They are so many opportunities in this country and yet they choose to remain slaves (dependents) to the government. Blacks are killing white on a scale five times worse than whites killing blacks but it's whitey's fault.

You talk about being retarded and an idiot. I would imagine your looking into a mirror while saying that.

Okay, so it is all their problem, their fault? They should fix the problem themselves? And, of course, your stance is not racist. You believe that the white people in the Ozarks are just as bad as the Native Americans and the blacks in the inner cities at being lazy and dumb and living off the government instead of fixing the desperate poverty in which they live?

We have severe poverty in America, in the inner city ghettos, on the reservation, and in the Ozarks. The poverty in the Ozarks is as bad as in the urban ghettos and on the reservations. The use of government assistance in the Ozarks is as high as in the inner cities. These people in the Ozarks are white, overwhelmingly white. Is it your opinion that they too are responsible for their own plight? Is it also your opinion that they should be left to take care of their problem on their own? Is it your position that their situation is their own fault? That "there are so many opportunities in this country and yet they remain slaves (dependents) to the government"?

Yes.

Poverty in America, isn't really poverty. The Census Bureau found that 80.9% of households considered poverty stricken have cell phones, 81% have cell phones along with their landlines, 58.2% have computers, 96.1% have televisions a third having a wide screen plasma or LCD TV, 83% have DVR's, 97.8% have gas or electric stoves, 96.6% microwaves, and over 83% have air conditioning, 65.6% own dryers, 44.9% own dishwashers, 75% have an automobile, 31% of those own two or more, two-thirds have satellite TV or cable, more than half have a video game system, 43% have internet access and on and on.

Yes if these people "live in poverty" then it's their own damn fault.

 

[Esmeralda]

Very sad.

Why is it sad? Evolution strains out the backward the retarded and the idiots. It's natures way of cleaning the gene pool.

You know--or probably you don't because you are obviously very intellectually limited--those who are lacking in sensibility and self esteem are those who are the biggest bullies: which means that's you buddy.

The social problems of the Native Americans are complex and something that goes back to the conquering of this country by European settlers, invaders actually. Just because you are where you are does not mean it has anything to do with you as an individual human being being superior to anyone: it's very clear you are not. If you had a brain of any worth, you would be able to put this situation in perspective and with other intelligent and perceptive people, try to think of a solution to the problem.

But, indeed and truly, you are a knuckle dragger and incapable of seeing anything past your big fat nose. The pathetic one, the one on the way out as far as evolution is concernedd is you. Yep. The Native Americans are evolving and will evolve, though it is tough, but they are in the process. You have had every opportunity to be a better person, but you are nowhere near being one.

You are the one who is "backward ... retarded and [an] idiot."

The old "blame whitey" excuse.

Why are they not held accountable for their own plight? Their poverty and poor health is something that each one can overcome through hard work and dedication. They are so many opportunities in this country and yet they choose to remain slaves (dependents) to the government. Blacks are killing white on a scale five times worse than whites killing blacks but it's whitey's fault.

You talk about being retarded and an idiot. I would imagine your looking into a mirror while saying that.

Okay, so it is all their problem, their fault? They should fix the problem themselves? And, of course, your stance is not racist. You believe that the white people in the Ozarks are just as bad as the Native Americans and the blacks in the inner cities at being lazy and dumb and living off the government instead of fixing the desperate poverty in which they live?

We have severe poverty in America, in the inner city ghettos, on the reservation, and in the Ozarks. The poverty in the Ozarks is as bad as in the urban ghettos and on the reservations. The use of government assistance in the Ozarks is as high as in the inner cities. These people in the Ozarks are white, overwhelmingly white. Is it your opinion that they too are responsible for their own plight? Is it also your opinion that they should be left to take care of their problem on their own? Is it your position that their situation is their own fault? That "there are so many opportunities in this country and yet they remain slaves (dependents) to the government"?

Yes.

Poverty in America, isn't really poverty. The Census Bureau found that 80.9% of households considered poverty stricken have cell phones, 81% have cell phones along with their landlines, 58.2% have computers, 96.1% have televisions a third having a wide screen plasma or LCD TV, 83% have DVR's, 97.8% have gas or electric stoves, 96.6% microwaves, and over 83% have air conditioning, 65.6% own dryers, 44.9% own dishwashers, 75% have an automobile, 31% of those own two or more, two-thirds have satellite TV or cable, more than half have a video game system, 43% have internet access and on and on.

Yes if these people "live in poverty" then it's their own damn fault.

It is not as simple as you want to believe. It is possible in America to rise above your beginning, but only the exceptional people do that. The average, ordinary people do not. They are stuck in the cycle of poverty into which they were born. This situation is not something new: it has always been this way throughout human history. It is part of the human condition. For people who were born into a situation with better beginnings and in which it is easier to achieve, it may seem that all you need is a little get up and go, but it is not the case for most people. It is possible to rise above your situation, most people don't. It isn't because they are dumb or lazy, there are other reasons more complex. Only the simple minded sees this kind of situation as simple and black and white. It is not simple at all.

Poverty in America isn't really poverty? Really? Because people have cell phones and TVs? If you watch your TV, you will see that people in 3rd world countries who live in poverty also have TVs and cell phones. The fact some people have these items does not exclude the fact they live a life is desperate poverty. Their TVs and phones are bought second hand or on the black market. It does not mean they are well off.

 

[Iceweasel]

Many Indian psychologists believe that the root of the population's suicide problem is the combination of generational trauma and loss of ethnic identity.

I call bull. I don't think about my ethnicity at all. Native Americans don't need to either, it's a choice and a choice of victimhood at that. You're a person, not a rce of people. Nothing is stopping anyone from leaving the reservations and becoming a productive member of society. Black, white, red, yellow or green. You can look in the rear view mirror or you can look forward, your choice.

 

[Skull Pilot]

The Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, home to the Oglala Sioux Tribe in South Dakota, is in a state of crisis. Over the past year, 14 school-age children on the reservation have killed themselves.

At the time of their suicides, four of those children were attending Pine Ridge School. On Wednesday, the U.S. Department of Education announced that the Bureau of Indian Education school, which has some 800 K-12 students, has received $218,000 in emergency funds to help its students deal with that trauma.

The school requested the grant money through the Education Department’s Project SERV (School Emergency Response to Violence). With the funds, Pine Ridge will be able to hire an additional counselor and social worker for the next 12 months, better implement a Lakota-based healing program and bring in cultural teachers to provide monthly lessons on healing processes, according to information provided by the Bureau of Indian Affairs.

The 183 Bureau of Indian Education schools nationwide, which are overseen by the federal government, face a number of daunting challenges. Suicide rates among young Native Americans are disproportionately high, while high school graduation rates are disproportionately low. Many BIE school facilities are old and in poor condition.

Between August 2014 and April 2015, Pine Ridge School saw a "significant increase" in suicide attempts and counseling referrals, according to the Education Department. But currently, the school has only two counselors on staff, said Nedra Darling, a spokesperson for the Department of the Interior.

"During the end of the School Year 2014-2015 the mood was somewhat in a mourning state," Darling wrote HuffPost, adding that school personnel were spending "a great amount of time" providing mental health counseling to students and staff.

"However, as graduation approached the mood lifted and many believe it is time to move forward to teach these children to celebrate life," Darling wrote.

The Education Department touted the grant as part of the Obama administration's overall push to improve life for Native youth. The White House launched its Generation Indigenous initiative in February in an effort to remove barriers for this population through new investments and opportunities to engage.

“We are heartbroken about the tragic loss of life and are committed to working with the Pine Ridge community as it heals. These funds will help Pine Ridge School’s continued efforts to restore the learning environment in the face of these great tragedies,” said William Mendoza, director of the White House Initiative on American Indian and Alaska Native Education, in Wednesday's press release. “This Administration is committed to supporting tribes in their work to meet the needs of their students. We all must do more to address the challenges across Indian Country.”

John Yellow Bird Steele, president of the Oglala Sioux Tribe, declared a state of emergency on the reservation in response to the youth suicides in February.

More: Native American School Mourning 4 Student Suicides Gets Emergency Federal Aid

Poverty and suicide are common among Native Americans. They aren't all rich Injuns with casinos.

Yeah just what Native Americans need is more federal action.

It was the federal government that put them where they are today.

Yep, that's pretty much the original crux of the problem - and current the solution.

The government is never a solution history bears that out as far as Native Americans are concerned

 

[Lonestar_logic]

Why is it sad? Evolution strains out the backward the retarded and the idiots. It's natures way of cleaning the gene pool.

You know--or probably you don't because you are obviously very intellectually limited--those who are lacking in sensibility and self esteem are those who are the biggest bullies: which means that's you buddy.

The social problems of the Native Americans are complex and something that goes back to the conquering of this country by European settlers, invaders actually. Just because you are where you are does not mean it has anything to do with you as an individual human being being superior to anyone: it's very clear you are not. If you had a brain of any worth, you would be able to put this situation in perspective and with other intelligent and perceptive people, try to think of a solution to the problem.

But, indeed and truly, you are a knuckle dragger and incapable of seeing anything past your big fat nose. The pathetic one, the one on the way out as far as evolution is concernedd is you. Yep. The Native Americans are evolving and will evolve, though it is tough, but they are in the process. You have had every opportunity to be a better person, but you are nowhere near being one.

You are the one who is "backward ... retarded and [an] idiot."

The old "blame whitey" excuse.

Why are they not held accountable for their own plight? Their poverty and poor health is something that each one can overcome through hard work and dedication. They are so many opportunities in this country and yet they choose to remain slaves (dependents) to the government. Blacks are killing white on a scale five times worse than whites killing blacks but it's whitey's fault.

You talk about being retarded and an idiot. I would imagine your looking into a mirror while saying that.

Okay, so it is all their problem, their fault? They should fix the problem themselves? And, of course, your stance is not racist. You believe that the white people in the Ozarks are just as bad as the Native Americans and the blacks in the inner cities at being lazy and dumb and living off the government instead of fixing the desperate poverty in which they live?

We have severe poverty in America, in the inner city ghettos, on the reservation, and in the Ozarks. The poverty in the Ozarks is as bad as in the urban ghettos and on the reservations. The use of government assistance in the Ozarks is as high as in the inner cities. These people in the Ozarks are white, overwhelmingly white. Is it your opinion that they too are responsible for their own plight? Is it also your opinion that they should be left to take care of their problem on their own? Is it your position that their situation is their own fault? That "there are so many opportunities in this country and yet they remain slaves (dependents) to the government"?

Yes.

Poverty in America, isn't really poverty. The Census Bureau found that 80.9% of households considered poverty stricken have cell phones, 81% have cell phones along with their landlines, 58.2% have computers, 96.1% have televisions a third having a wide screen plasma or LCD TV, 83% have DVR's, 97.8% have gas or electric stoves, 96.6% microwaves, and over 83% have air conditioning, 65.6% own dryers, 44.9% own dishwashers, 75% have an automobile, 31% of those own two or more, two-thirds have satellite TV or cable, more than half have a video game system, 43% have internet access and on and on.

Yes if these people "live in poverty" then it's their own damn fault.

It is not as simple as you want to believe. It is possible in America to rise above your beginning, but only the exceptional people do that. The average, ordinary people do not. They are stuck in the cycle of poverty into which they were born. This situation is not something new: it has always been this way throughout human history. It is part of the human condition. For people who were born into a situation with better beginnings and in which it is easier to achieve, it may seem that all you need is a little get up and go, but it is not the case for most people. It is possible to rise above your situation, most people don't. It isn't because they are dumb or lazy, there are other reasons more complex. Only the simple minded sees this kind of situation as simple and black and white. It is not simple at all.

Poverty in America isn't really poverty? Really? Because people have cell phones and TVs? If you watch your TV, you will see that people in 3rd world countries who live in poverty also have TVs and cell phones. The fact some people have these items does not exclude the fact they live a life is desperate poverty. Their TVs and phones are bought second hand or on the black market. It does not mean they are well off.

I think you need to do some research. Likening our version of poverty to a third world nation is insane. Show me stats showing the poor in third world countries have luxury items comparable to the US. Show where 75% have cars, where 97% have gas or electric stoves and 81% have cellphones.

In other words, prove your ridiculous claim.

 

[Esmeralda]

Many Indian psychologists believe that the root of the population's suicide problem is the combination of generational trauma and loss of ethnic identity.

I call bull. I don't think about my ethnicity at all. Native Americans don't need to either, it's a choice and a choice of victim-hood at that. You're a person, not a rce of people. Nothing is stopping anyone from leaving the reservations and becoming a productive member of society. Black, white, red, yellow or green. You can look in the rear view mirror or you can look forward, your choice.

Of course you think of your 'ethnicity,' You're white, and you think about that as a fundamental part of your identity. Of course being white is not an ethnicity, but people seem to feel it in the way one would feel ethnicity.

As well, in order to really understand the situation, one needs to understand the culture and cultural background of Native Americans. It's obvious you don't and don't want to. It varies from culture to culture, but cultural identity can be extremely strong and important; it can be a guide for ones entire world and personal perspective.

These views of the conservative right are very Cretinesque. Definition of CRETIN. 1. often offensive : one afflicted with cretinism. 2. : a stupid, vulgar, or insensitive person : clod, lout.