Law | National

Oglala Sioux Tribe ready for major referendum on liquor sales

Monday, August 12, 2013

Members of the Oglala Sioux Tribe of South Dakota go to the polls tomorrow to decide whether to legalize alcohol sales on the reservation.

Except for a brief period in 1970, the Pine Ridge Reservation has been dry since its creation in 1889. The referendum changes that and would authorize the tribe to be the sole alcohol provider, a move that could generate revenues for substance abuse treatment programs.

Opponents, however, say alcoholism and other social problems will only get worse. President Bryan Brewer, who opposes the referendum, said any revenues the tribe receives would be "blood money."

“This is a very complex problem,” Brewer told Alternet. “We need more education, more treatment, more involvement among our people to stop this epidemic.”

Tribal members who want to drink usually go to Whiteclay, a town just across the border in Nebraska. Four stores there reportedly sell 13,000 cans of beer and malt liquor, mostly to people from the reservation.

Get the Story:
Alcohol or Not Vote, as Nebraska Town, Population 10, Sells 13,000 Cans of Beer Daily to Oglala Sioux (Alternet 8/11)
Which way to turn on tribal alcohol sales? (The Sioux Falls Argus Leader 8/11)
Heineman: Whiteclay talks at standstill (KOTA 8/8)