Opinion: Not every tribe has cashed in on Indian gaming industry

Monday, August 9, 2010  

"Indian casinos have been crucial to improving the quality of life for some tribes, supplying not only employment for tribal members and non-Indians, but the seed money for other tribal business ventures. Additionally, tribes with successful gaming ventures now have increased political strength and less hostile relationships with their surrounding non-Indian communities.

In the state of Washington, where I reside, one tribe provides an excellent example of the opportunities casinos can create. The Muckleshoot tribe opened its casino in 1995; it provides employment for both tribal members but also non-Indians from the surrounding communities (roughly 70%). With casino revenue providing seed money, the tribe now either owns or has invested in businesses wholly unrelated to gaming. It also has a beautiful medical facility that provides medical and dental care for all Muckleshoots and their family members. Additionally, the tribe has a policy of building homes for its elders.

In a sense, it has become self-sufficient enough to provide for its own health and welfare. It has gone beyond looking out for its own as well. Last year, it gave over $4m (£2.5m) to more than 200 Washington state schools, churches and charities through the Muckleshoot Charity Fund. Its dedication to the future of its members and its perseverance in the face of the most daunting of challenges deserves nothing but the utmost respect.

The Muckleshoot Tribe is a success story. But, it is the exception – many tribes still lack access to even the most basic of human necessities. Some haven't the infrastructure to provide running water, let alone business opportunities. The federal government continues to breach its trust responsibility, evidenced by staggering statistics: Native Americans have the highest rates of poverty, unemployment and disease of any ethnic group in America. Upwards of 70,000 Navajos have no running water. Many must travel several miles to wells and are forced to haul water back to their homes for family and livestock, while neighbouring non-Indian communities spring up in the desert like oases, so proud are they of their green lawns and swimming pools.

Most Americans are labouring under the mistaken notion that Indian tribes are wealthy because they've been "given" a special privilege to operate casinos. The truth is far different – only a small minority of tribes have truly successful reservation economies. Since the advent of tribal gaming, conditions on most reservations have remained the same. The small number of tribes reaping the benefits of gaming overshadow the majority of tribes that can't, and don't."

Get the Story:
Barbara Wells: Native Americans can't always cash in on casinos (The Guardian 8/9)