Native American/Tribal Communities

A federally-funded treatment and prevention program is being credited with a 32-percent decline in fetal alcohol syndrome cases among Alaska's Native population. The $29-million program, which included a state-produced multimedia education campaign featuring public service announcements, newspaper, radio and TV ads, changed the path of the trend, said L. Diane Casto, Manager of Prevention and Early Intervention Services, Division of Behavioral Health, for the Alaska Department of Health and Social Services – a CADCA state member.

American Indians and Alaska Natives ages 12 or older were less likely to have used alcohol in the past year than were members of other racial groups, but they were more likely than members of other racial groups to have a past-year alcohol use disorder and to have a past-year illicit drug use disorder, according to new report from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA).

The Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP), in cooperation with the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), the National Coalition Institute (NCI) and White Bison, a nonprofit organization that helps coordinate healing resources within Native American communities, announced a two-day grant application workshop to assist Native American communities who wish to compete for Federal Drug-Free Communities (DFC) grants.

A recent study published in the American Journal of Public Health found that young American Indians living on reservations may be increasingly vulnerable to illicit drug use, underscoring the need for culturally specific prevention programs. At an in-depth course held at CADCA´s Mid-Year Training Institute July 30-Aug. 2, 2007, several experts in the field of substance abuse will discuss ways that community coalitions can play a major role in preventing drug abuse in the Native American population, and other communities.

For coalition leaders in Navajo County, Ariz.—where methamphetamine abuse is the number one problem—the toughest challenge was not only keeping more youth from joining the ranks of meth users, it was getting the community to accept that it had a problem.

Applications are now being accepted for the FY08 Indian Alcohol and Substance Abuse Program (IASAP): Technical Assistance and Training Coordination and Implementation grants, which support the planning and implementation of comprehensive strategies to reduce and control crime associated with the distribution and abuse of alcohol and other controlled substances.

A toolkit to help Native communities protect their children from the harm caused by drinking alcohol during pregnancy is now available from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA).

The White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) this week unveiled a new anti-methamphetamine (meth) ad campaign launched in Missouri and across the country, with particular focus on 16 States where meth prevalence, and lab seizures and incidents, are high. The campaign includes customizable public service announcements (PSAs) that coalitions can use to launch campaigns in their communities.

From 1879 to 1940, nearly 4,000 Native American children were forcibly removed from their homes and sent to one of 500 government-funded boarding schools where they were severely punished for speaking their native language and practicing their traditions. Some say that the abuse that occurred at these schools could be one of the underlying causes for the high rates of substance abuse and suicide in Native communities today. This May, White Bison—an American Indian non-profit organization that offers prevention, sobriety and recovery resources to Native Americans—will launch the Wellbriety Journey for Forgiveness to help Native communities heal from this trauma.

Almost 12 percent of children under the age of 18 years of age live with at least one parent who was dependent on, or abused alcohol or an illicit drug during the past year, according to a report by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). The report is based on national data from 2002 to 2007.

Native Americans from across the country were in Washington, DC yesterday to mark the end of a 40-day 6,800-mile "Wellbriety Journey of Forgiveness." The Journey was launched in May by White Bison - an American Indian non-profit organization that offers prevention, sobriety and recovery resources to Native Americans - to help Native communities heal from the trauma caused by the boarding school initiative in the late 1800s.