Essays: Pine Ridge Reservation

“I did not know then how much was ended. When I look back now from this high hill of my old age, I can still see the butchered women and children lying heaped and scattered all along the crooked gulch as plain as when I saw them with eyes still young. And I can see that something else died there in the bloody mud, and was buried in the blizzard. A people's dream died there. It was a beautiful dream . . . the nation's hoop is broken and scattered. There is no center any longer, and the sacred tree is dead."

- Black Elk

Like many Indian reservations scattered throughout the United States, Pine Ridge is a place that is forgotten by many people living in South Dakota and it is virtually unheard of by mainstream American society. Located just east of the Wyoming border in Southwestern South Dakota, the Pine Ridge reservation is hidden behind Mount Rushmore, the Needles Highway, Devil’s Tower, and the infamous town of Wall. Alcoholism, poverty, and violence have been part of everyday life for the people who live on and around the Pine Ridge Reservation. Almost every time American citizens opens a newspaper or magazine they are exposed to some sort of poverty, mostly in third world areas in Africa, the Middle East or Asia. People feel a certain responsibility to help or at least acknowledge the fact that these things are real.

But what about the “third world country” that is located in the middle of the richest country in the world? According to the Wall Street Journal, the life expectancy of people living on Pine Ridge Reservation is the shortest in the Western Hemisphere, outside of Haiti. Because of the history of historical oppression suffered at the hands of the US government, Pine Ridge is one of the most troubled places in the United States. The unemployment rate of Pine Ridge hovers around 80%, and the prospect of finding a job is even slimmer, because Rapid City, the nearest city of any consequence, lies 110 miles away. In addition, gang violence is at an all time high among the youth on the reservation creating a dangerous environment for teens to grow up in.

Despite the oppression suffered by these people throughout history, the culture and respect running through the Lakota way of life is unmatched. People throughout the reservation show amazing resiliency and respect for their culture and what lies ahead for them in the future.

A woman walks through the kitchen looking for clean water to drink in Pine Ridge, South Dakota. Many people on Pine Ridge Reservation don't have running water or electricity. (Photo by Matthew Williams/ZUMA Press)
   
A can of Hurricane is passed between Uriah Lafferty and his sister Cassie Wilson in their home on Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota. (Photo by Matthew Williams/ZUMA Press)
   
Alexis Oxendine pushes a stroller through the front yard in Pine Ridge, South Dakota. Many houses lack basic amenities such as running water and electricity. (Photo by Matthew Williams/ZUMA Press)
     
  
Liz Eagle Bull fixes breakfast about a week before her baby is born on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in Pine Ridge, South Dakota. There is only one hospital on the reservation and many times people are forced to drive nearly an hour or are left without medical care altogether if they don't have a vehicle. (Photo by Matthew Williams/ZUMA Press)
   
Jordan Anduja gives his uncle George Eagle Bull an insulin shot in his front yard in Pine Ridge, South Dakota. George is one of the many diabetics living on the reservation and struggling to receive adequate treatment. (Photo by Matthew Williams/ZUMA Press)
   
A young girl stands in front of her trailor in Pine Ridge, South Dakota. Pine Ridge Reservation, located in Shannon County, is considered the poorest county in the United States. Gang violence, unemployment, and alcoholism are major problems throughout the reservation. (Photo by Matthew Williams/ZUMA Press)
     
  
Richard "June" Wilson smokes a joint on a summer night in Pine Ridge, South Dakota. Many young people turn to drugs, alcohol, and gang violence at an early age. (Photo by Matthew Williams/ZUMA Press)
   
Posters of rappers surround family photographs in June Wilson's room. June, 17, lives on Pine Ridge Reservation with is family without running water and finds escape in rap music. Gang violence on the reservation is at an all time high and has created a dangerous environment for young people to grow up in. (Photo by Matthew Williams/ZUMA Press)
   
Young boys ride horses through the neighborhoods of Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota. (Photo by Matthew Williams/ZUMA Press)
     
  
   
  
Men and women are passed out on the streets on a daily basis in Whiteclay, Nebr. merelytwo miles from Pine Ridge, South Dakota. (Photo by Matthew Williams/ZUMA Press)
     
  
Teens gather at the skate park in the evenings and during the long summer days in Pine Ridge, South Dakota. Pine Ridge Reservation, located in Shannon County, is considered the poorest county in the United States. Gang violence, unemployment, and alcoholism are major problems throughout the reservation. (Photo by Matthew Williams/ZUMA Press)
   
Christmas lights adorn a laundromat as a man walks past in the sweltering June heat. Mission groups come through the reservation frequently trying to convert the residents as well as contribute to the upkeep of houses and buildings throughout the reservation. Many Native Americans on the reservation have adopted a mixture of Christianity and traditional beliefs. (Photo by Matthew Williams/ZUMA Press)
   
Two teenaged boys smoke outside of the grocery store "Sioux Nation" in Pine Ridge, South Dakota. (Photo by Matthew Williams/ZUMA Press)
     
  
Alexis Oxendine pets one of the horses on Pine Ridge Reservation. Many people use horses a primary means of transportation during the summer to get from place to place. (Photo by Matthew Williams/ZUMA Press)
   
  
     
  
   
Richard "June" Wilson stands in his brother's room where they do their rapping. He says rap is a way to talk about the problems he faces on the reservation, which he likens to a big city in his lyrics. (Photo by Matthew Williams/ZUMA Press)
   
     
  
A young mother helps her son onto the horse on Pine Ridge Reservation, South Dakota. Family values are something that elders in the community see as being lost among the younger generations as they turn to drugs, alcohol, and gang activity. (Photo by Matthew Williams/ZUMA Press)
   
Darlene High Hawk tends to her two daughters, Destiny (right) and Danielle (left), who are fighting for their mothers attention on Friday, June 2, 2006 in a housing complex outside of Pine Ridge, South Dakota. Darlene has six children and doesn't have time to leave them and work. Pine Ridge Reservation is considered the poorest county in the United States. Gang violence, unemployment, and alcoholism are major problems throughout the reservation. (Photo by Matthew Williams/ZUMA Press)
   
A burnt out trailer is tagged with gang signs in the prairie of Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota, on Thursday, October 22, 2009. Gang violence and crime are on the rise throughout the reservation.
     
  
Danielle High Hawk is put on the trampoline where she can't escape while her mother tends to her other daughters on Friday, June 2, 2006 in a housing complex outside of Pine Ridge, South Dakota. Darlene has six children and doesn't have time to leave them and work. Pine Ridge Reservation is considered the poorest county in the United States. Gang violence, unemployment, and alcoholism are major problems throughout the reservation. (Photo by Matthew Williams/ZUMA Press)
   
Jordan Anduja plays basketball in his uncle's front yard on the Pine Ridge Reservation in Pine Ridge, South Dakota. (Photo by Matthew Williams/ZUMA Press)
   
     
  
   
A young girl waits in line for the pow wow to begin in Pine Ridge, South Dakota. Many of the tribal elders feel a loss of traidion and respect among the youth. (Photo by Matthew Williams/The City Paper)
   
An eagle from the National Eagle Center rests after the opening ceremony of the Pow wow in Pine Ridge, South Dakota. Eagles are considered one of the most sacred animals. (Photo by Matthew Williams/ZUMA Press)
     
  
A man sits with his head in his hands in White Clay, Nebr. White Clay, population 17, which is merely two miles away from Pine Ridge, consists of four liquor stores that sell an average of 12,500 cans of beer a day, mostly to the residents of Pine Ridge Reservation. (Photo by Matthew Williams/ZUMA Press)
   
  
Young people fille the courts as the sun sets and the heat gives way to the cool night air in Pine Ridge, South Dakota. (Photo by Matthew Williams/ZUMA Press)
     
  
Rich "Junior" Lame, sits in his bedroom on Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota, on Wednesday, October 21, 2009. Although, not a member of one specific gang, Junior is surrounded by the gang influence and hip hop influence throughout his everyday life. Most of his friends are involved in the gangs.
   
Knives, clubs, and bats are the main weapons used by gangs on the reservation, but gun violence is on the rise as of late. Rich "Junior" Lame and Leston Moran compare each other's knives on Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota, on Thursday, October 22, 2009.
   
A lone horse is tied outside the Pizza Hut in Pine Ridge, South Dakota. There are four fast food restaurant's in town and a grocery store, which all contribute to the high rate of diabetes and dietary health problems that are sky rocketing in the area. (Photo by Matthew Williams/The City Paper)
     
  
Florence Lone Elk, 23, sleeps in the living room of their house on Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota, on Wednesday, October 21, 2009. Six people reside in the house on a regular basis, which does not have running water or plumbing.
  
A horse grazes by a nearby basketball court on the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota, on Thursday, October 22, 2009.
  
Rich Lone Elk, 24, walks out of his bedroom on the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota past boxes of commodity food and jugs of water on Thursday, October 22, 2009. There is no running water in the house that six people regularly reside in. Rich, a member of the Northside Tre Tre Gangsta' Crips has been involved in the gang since he was in his early teens.
     
  
Rich Lone Elk stands outside his house on Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota, on Thursday, October 22, 2009. Rich, a member of the Northside Tre Tre Gangsta' Crips has been involved in the gang since he was in his early teens.
   
Cody Brown, 18, left, a member of the Black Wallstreet Gang, and Rich "Junior" Lame, 18, smoke a cigarette outside a house in Pine Ridge, South Dakota, on Thursday, October 22, 2009. Both of the boys have been influenced by the rising gang culture on the reservation, which has deep roots in urban hip hop culture.
  
Cody Brown, 18, a member of the Black Wallstreet Gang spends time in his bedroom in Pine Ridge, South Dakota, which is decorated with Scarface and 2Pac posters, on Thursday, October 22, 2009. Brown has been involved in the gang since he was a young teenager.
     
  
Leston Moran, 24, displays the scars of attempted suicide on Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota on Thursday, October 22, 2009. Moran, recently released from prison for armed robbery, tried to kill himself in prison when his grandmother passed away and he wasn't able to attend the services.
  
Rich "Junior" Lame, meets up with friends in Pine Ridge, South Dakota, on Thursday, October 22, 2009. "Junior" who doesn't claim just one gang, says all of his friends are in gangs and he relates to the lifestyle and urban influences found throughout the gangs on the reservation.