By Rodney M. Bordeaux
President, Rosebud Sioux Tribe
Relatives:
Recently, I spoke at a funeral of a young mother. Hers was a life that ended too soon. As I spoke, I could not help, but think of her small child. This child will grow up without a mother. My thoughts then went to the family that would be looking after the child. Our families have stepped up to care for each other for hundreds of years and still do so to this day. We do this because our children truly are sacred. No matter how old they get, they are still our children and we want the best for them.
We want this mother's child to grow up in a safe and drug-free world. We have struggled with meth and opioid addiction. There are people presently on our reservation that are doing harm to our people by selling and trading these harmful drugs. Our own people are being used to distribute it to others. We need to take further action.
Earlier this year, the Rosebud Sioux Tribal Council established mandatory minimum sentences for possession of a controlled substance and for distribution of controlled substances such as meth. The Council reclassified possession of a controlled substance as a Class A Offense, which is our most serious offense. The Council also voted to exclude a non-member from the reservation related to drugs and distribution. There are three other such exclusions of non-members pending within our system and two others pending review. We are working with our communities in tackling this issue. Parents, grandparents and some of our youth a leading the way in educating peers on the dangers of methamphetamine and opioids.
We were hopeful that longer sentences would enable those suffering from this addiction to undergo treatment. We have had some successes treating our people while they have been incarcerated in our detention facility. We are thankful for the work of the RST Drug and Alcohol Program in service to our people, but they need resources that will enable them to help others.
I have invited Governor Noem to visit with our Tribal Council in the near future to discuss ways that we can work together on this issue. I have also directed our Attorney General and our tribal attorney to sit down and meet with the South Dakota Attorney General to discuss the methamphetamine and opioid issue. They will be meeting next week. I believe that this dialogue is important because addiction does not care what color you are or whether you live on a reservation or not. We participated in the Meth Summit in Pierre a short time ago. The time for talking is over. The time for action is now! Our children and families depend on it.
Rodney M. Bordeaux was born and raised in Rosebud, South Dakota, and enjoyed a childhood on the beautiful Rosebud Reservation learning the importance of community involvement and public service. Bordeaux dedicated much of his professional life to serving the Rosebud Sioux Tribe including twenty years in education, twelve years on the RST Council, and is serving his fourth term as RST President. In addition to serving in an elected official capacity for the RST, Mr. Bordeaux served six years as the Chief Operations Officer (COO) for the Saint Francis Mission and currently serves as the President of the Board of Directors for Red Cloud Indian School.
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