Native youth march in anti-racism rally in Rapid City, South Dakota, on February 26, 2015. Photo by Simon Moya-Smith / Twitter
A tax to fight addictions
Common Council President Jerry Wright speaks out on alcohol and drugs
By Ernestine Chasing Hawk
Native Sun News Staff Writer RAPID CITY –– Dialog has begun between Rapid City Common Council members and members of the Rapid City Indian community that could lead to tax relief for property owners and relief from the aftermath of substance abuse. Jerry Wright, Rapid City Common Council President believes the culprit in recent clashes between Natives and whites in the Rapid City community is a mixture of fear, fueled by the influence of alcohol and drugs. “The true cause and root of the problem seems to evade attention and continues its destructive path,” Wright stated at a recent meeting of the common council; the root of this community violence being alcohol/drug abuse resulting in personal tragedy.” While serving in the military and as a public servant, Wright witnessed his share of the havoc inflicted on families and the community by substance abuse. Alcoholics have also touched his life personally as family members. Last December, during the Lakota Nations Invitational Tournament, when thousands of fans poured into Rapid City, Alan Locke, a Native American who earlier in the day had participated in a march against police brutality, was shot and killed by a police officer. Wright said that press coverage of the shooting, and other press releases of knifings, roll overs and hostage situations, contained a common theme, “under the influence.”
Jerry Wright, the president of the Rapid City Common Council
“In the recent shooting, the press states that the officer entered situation, upon request, where the ‘victim’ was highly intoxicated and had several drugs in his system, the ‘victim’ had a knife and threatened by charging the officer and the victim had made comments about it being ‘a good day to die,” Wright told the city council. “A very, very real tragedy, not caused by the officer in any way, but by the mixing of alcohol, drugs, and other issues, culminating in a tragedy for the individual, the family, the officer, and the entire community,” Wright said. He said officers, local, state, and federal do not go to work hoping to shoot someone or to inflict any harm on anyone, “What they want is a peaceful work shift and to return safely to their families.” Last month an incident that drew nationwide attention involving drunken hockey fans and a group of young Native children from American Horse School on the Pine Ridge Indian reservation again involved the common theme, alcohol. “We must address the real issue, and it being substance abuse and the destructive power it has on our individuals, our youth, our families, and our communities,” he added. So Alderman Wright understands the need for solutions to the age-old problem of substance abuse, and is looking for answers. But like any innovative idea, funding is usually a barrier. But Wright has a solution, taxing the culprit, alcohol. “We must enact a tax on alcohol to pay for its tragic consequences, to pay for recovery and treatment, and to require that all drug money seized by law enforcement be used in the same way,” he said. He proposes a liquor/beer tax that would replace the current system wherein property taxes are used to pay for law enforcement, courts, incarceration and other related expenses incurred by individuals who have abused alcohol. The cost he said is not just that incurred through the criminal justice system, but also the cost of families torn apart by addiction, social isolation and health care costs. “Putting someone in jail for getting drunk is not going to solve the problem. We need to find some answers and fund them adequately,” he said. “For it is true ‘we are all related’ and we must work for problem solution and not be misdirecting our rightful anger.” (Ernestine Chasing Hawk can be reached at staffwriter2@nsweekly.com) Copyright permission Native Sun News
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