Marshall Matz: Addressing high unemployment in Indian Country

Tuesday, July 5, 2011  

"We have much to celebrate on America's birthday 2011. We remain the shining light on the hill, and I remain optimistic about America. We have some very serious problems to face as a nation, and the extreme partisanship of Washington is making it more difficult to resolve them. But necessity is the mother of invention and, ultimately, they must be addressed.

America's first challenge, however, does not get enough attention: how to deal fairly with Native Americans, the Indian population and specifically those living on Indian reservations. The Indian reservations of South Dakota and all those in the Missouri River Valley, face a critical situation. When you look at the data for infant mortality, life expectancy, health profiles, education levels, drug use, alcoholism and other social indicators it simply does not reflect those of the U.S.

After spending 40 years in and around the reservations of South Dakota I am convinced that the only long-term solution is a full-scale attack on the unemployment rate. While we all struggle with a national unemployment rate of 9 percent, the unemployment rate on many Indian reservations is far in excess of 50 percent and can reach an unemployment rate of 70 percent or higher. At that level, there is no possible way to address the social needs of the reservations."

Get the Story:
Marshall L. Matz: First Americans deserve a better shake (The Sioux Falls Argus Leader 7/2)