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Gale, NancyPass the Word. A Resource Booklet for the NativeAmerican Community Concerning New Concepts aboutAlcoholism.Native American Development Corp., Washington, DC.Office of Elementary and Secondary Education,Washington, DC. School Improvement Programs.

9022p.

Native American Development Corporation, 1000Connecticut Ave., N.W., Suite 1206, Washington, DC

20036.Guides Non-Classroom Use (055)

MF01/PC01 Plus Postage.*Alcohol Abuse; *Alcohol Education; *Alcoholism;American Indian Education; *American Indians;Community Action; *Community Attitudes; Drug Abuse;Prevention

Attitudes toward alcohol abuse are changing in Indiancountry. A number of separate but complementary attitudes arecreating a circle of support in the fight against alcohol abuse.These new attitudes hold that: (1) Native Americans are not condemnedby their race to a destiny cf alcohol-related problems, but, rather,have a choice; (2) abstinence is an acceptable option; (3) the

non-drinker need not be isolated and lonely; (4) the community isresponsible for addressing alcoholism and drug abuse and must act tooffer alternative activities; and (5) success is possible. Among thenew concepts about alcoholism that have emerged in the past decadeare the ideas that alcoholism: (1) is a family and community disease;(2) affects multiple generations; (3) is the tip of an iceberg,riding atop a mass of other problems; and (4) often coexists withother specific probler such as depression and cultural shame. In tfight against alcohol abuse, American Indians have some specialcultural attributes that can help them, including extendgld familynetworks, close-knit communities with strong identities, and holisticworld views. Native Americans are headed in the right direction andmust use their resources to maintain the movement against alcohol anddrug abuse. (SV)

* Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made *

* from the original document. *

**n******************************************************* ***********4

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PASSTHEWORDWe can beat the enemy.

We know now thatalcoholism has manyhurtful companions. It isa family and communitydisease.

But, it can be beaten,and Indian people havespecial resources for thefight.

U S DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION. t A' .,, 94esea -

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PASSTIIEWORD

7.2

A ResourceBooklet forthe NativeAmericanCommunityConcerning NewConcepts AboutAlcoholism

This booklet looks at how attitudes towards alcohol abuse are changingin Indian country. It also looks at new ideas in the field of preventingand treating alcoholism: ideas that alcoholism is a family and commu-nity disease; that it is multi-generational; that it is like the tip of aniceberg; and that it co-exists with other problems. The booklet looks atthe resources within Indian communities and evaluates what needs tobe done to win the war against alcohol and drugs.

v,

Success HappensFIor the last several years, approximately 70 percentof the adult population in Akhiok on Alaska's Kodiaksland has maintained sobriety. Just before that,

only 10 percent of the Aleut village's adults were chroni-cally sober. What's happened? "The change has comefrom within," says a village council spokesperson.

In Eagle Butte, SD, a bar has been closed down andreplaced by a community-supported youth center. TheMain, located at the end of Plain Street in the town of5,000, provides supervised, drug-free recreationalactivitiesincluding video machinesfor localyoungsters who participate in raising funds to operatethe center. The center is one resuit of a grassroots effortto support a tribal council resolution that "by the year2,000 the Cheyenne River Sioux Reservation will be 100percent drug and alcohol free."

Indian youth from around the country last summerparticipated in a warriors' staking ceremony and vowednever to retreat in the spiritual war against alcohol,drugs and other hurts. Their vows came in response to achallenge issued at a gathering of 400 young peoplewho had come together for a conference sponsored bythe United National Indian Tribal Youth (UNITY).

There are 35 teenage youngsters in the Blackfeet YouthAlliance. Plembers of the Alliance range in age from 14 to22. Together the Alliance travels throughout thenorthwestern US and into Canada. They share gospeland country music, talented dance routines andtestimonies of their experiences with alcohol and drugs.They dedicate their spare time to helping each other andany other youth who wants to be independent of alcol:Jland drug ,:buse. The Blackfeet Youth Alliance is warmlyreceived by its Indian hosts. Its messages are judged"honest" and "touching."

Redefining the battleAttitudes Are Changing

Throughout Indian country,attitudes toward drinking

related, attitudes are taking

WHAT ARE THESE ATTITUDES?

A number of separate, yet inter-

strengthen and maintain oneanother. They are creating acircle of support in the fight

holdand growing. These

Thbal people have a choice. For a while, in somecommunities, it has been accepted that being Indianwent hand-in-hand with alcohol abuse. Many people,

condemned all Indians to a destiny of alcohol-related

Abstinehce is an acceptable option. Drinking, the

including Native Americans, endorsed a stereotype that

problems.

among Native Americans is high, but the majority of

a

nct to abuse alcohol. Research is showing that nothingbout the American Indian sentences him irrevokably to

alcoholism.

Indians are NOT alcoholics. The majority, in fact, choose

stereotype erroneously told us, was a part of "being

attitudes complement,

against alcohol abuse.

Research has showed us that, yes, alcohol abuse

are changing.

1r---

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5 / Pass the Word

Indian". Drinking, some of us came to believe, was anIndian way of socializing and sharing. To refuse anoffered drink seemed, in many cases, to cut an Indianaway from other Indians ... make him/her less Indian.This notion is being soundly challenged now.

The Swinomish Tribal Mental Health Program, forinstance, states that "drinking alcoholic beverages isstrongly disapproved in traditional Indian society and iscontrary to traditional Indian values." The use of alcoholis, the Swinomish Program reminds us, strictly prohibitedduring participation in traditional spiritual activities.

The non-drinker need not be isolated and lonely.Indian non-drinkers are coming out of the closet. Socialsupport is building for abstinence, recovery and non-drinking lifestyles. In addition, more and more drinkingIndians are embracing sobriety. The isolation andloneliness which accompanied abstinence in somecommunities are lessening.

The community is responsible for addressingalcoholism and drug abuse. Indian communities, inincreasing numbers, are concluding that only thecommunity itself can eliminate alcohol abuse. Tribalcommunities and groups are publicly accepting thisresponsibility.

For example, the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe has, bycouncil resolution, "declared war on all that is asseciatedwith alcohol and drug 7.1:use and strives for the goal thatby the year 2,000 the Cheyenne River Reservation will beICO percent drug and alcohol free."

The community must act to provide activities andprograms which offer alternatives to alcohol abuse.These alternatives must be designed for Indian people byIndian people and must be appropriate to thecommunity's particular situation and culture.

Por example, over 1,000 people of the Gila RiverIndian Community last June celebrated the graduation of300+ eighth graders and high school seniors in severalall-night chcmical-free celebrations organized by thereservation's youth council. For the graduates, the partieswere free. For everyone, they were fun!

6 / Pass the Word

Success is possible. Optimism is growing. Theacceptance of alcoholism as an inevitable part of modernIndian life is being replaced.

Progress, though it may be slow, is being noted. IHSstates that, although the alcoholism mortality rate forAmerican Indians is still about four times greater than forthe general US population, this rate has been reduced 52percent. Between 1978 and 1985, the Native Americanmortality rate from alcoholism has decreased from 54.5to 26.1 per 100,000 population.

In addition, specific examples and patterns of successare beginning to emerge. "Clinical experience suggests,"says the Swinomish Tribal Mental Health Program, "thatthere may be a larger proportion of Indian alcoholics whoare able to permanently stop drinking than is the caseamong non-Indian alcoholics." The Swinomish Programsuggests that the reasons for this may be related to astrengthening of Indian cultural identity which appears tohelp indMduals overcome problems with drinking.

"I4

Understanding the EnemyThere Are New Ideas

In the past ten or so years,there has been a substantialchange in the concepts used

to understand alcoholism.There are liew ideas concerning

the effects of abuse andaddiction, about who is impacted,

and how. Some of these newconcepts apply to the population

as a whole; some are Indian-specific. All are worthy of

consideration by anycommunity mounting anattack on alcohol abuse.

WHAT ARE THESE NEW IDEAS?

Alcoholism is a family and community disease. It hurtsus all. In addition to hurting the alcoholic, alcoholismhurts the physical, mental, emotional and spiritualhealth of the alcoholic's family members andcommunity members.

Alcoholism is multi-generational. Presently, it isaffecting 3-4 generations and will affect generations tocome.

Alcoholism is like the tip of an iceberg. It rides atop asubmerged mass of other problems.

In Indian communities, alcoholism often co-exists withcertain specific other problems like depression, self-

8 / Pass the Word

hate, cultural shame and stress-related acting out.

ALCOHOLISM IS A FAMILY AND COMMUNITY DISEASE.

"I'm not hurting anyone but myself." In the past, thisresponse was common when an alcoholic was confrontedwith his/her drinking.

It was also afforded considerable credibility, becausemost pre.vention and treatment efforts were aimed at

In Indian communities, in fact, alcoholism was oftenconsidered a problem of adult males, mostly in their late30s to early 50s. These were the people who were mostoften visibly affected by alcohol and the ones usuallytageted by services.

In the last ten or so years, however, there has been agrowing recognition that alcnholism is not confined bysex or age. In addition, it is being realized that thefamilies, friends and communities of alcoholics alsosuffer from the effects of the illness.

School personnel and mental health professionalsare reporting that 60 to 80 percent of the studentsidentified as high-risk for all variety of serious problemsare from homes in which one or more family members ischemically dependent.

Likewise, reports are showing that the majority ofyoung people who are in sobriety support groups and themajority of those in other mental health groups andintervention programs are children of alcoholics.

It is now believed that that the alcoholic's family,friends and community get so entangled in theconsequences of alcoholism that they themselvesbecome ill.

III? What kind of Illness? People who live in alcoholichomes often suffer from headaches, upset stomachs,insomnia and learning disabilities.

They live in atmospheres of anxiety, confusion andtension and often develop psychological coping methodsto survive their environment. These coping mechanismsmay be helpful, even necessary, to get them by eachimmediate crisis. The coping techniques might include:denial, lying, and/or suppression of feeling.

But these mechanisms are unhealthy when

9 / Pass the Word

transferred to other situations and often produce mentaland emotional problems.

People who live in chemically dependent familiesoften experience an unhealthy amount of anger, fear,guilt, and loneliness. They often feel shamed, inadequate,resentful and/or helpless.

To deal with these psychological pressures, membersof a chemically dependent family frequently developcertain characteristics or roles.

WHAT ARE THESE ROLES?

To provide the family with self-worth, one familymember might consistently act a hero. He or she seeksapproval, leadership and control and focuses on clearlydefined tasks where achievement is noticeable.

Another family member may act as a scapegoat. Thisprovides the family with a recognizable target upon whichto focus blame. This person is rebellious, defiant andconfrontational. He or she often gets involved withchemical use at a young age.

To provide the family with emotionai relief, anothermember acts as a mascot. He or she clowns a lot andworks hard to diffuse or divert conflict.

Chemically dermdent families also often have a lostchild. This is the child who "blends into the woodwork,"who is able to watch TV in the midst of a raging familyfight. This person acts as an emotional sponge for thefamily, soaking up its feelings.

There is also someone who plays the important roleof the enabler. This person, who comet, to see him/herself as a martyr, supports the alcoholic or drug abuserby assuming responsibility, covering up and makingexcuses.

People who grow in alcoholic families tend toshare certain specific personality characteristics,according to the mental health professionals who workwith them. These characteristics are listed below.

Many children of alcoholic families:

have to guess at what is normal behavior;

have difficulty completing projects;

1 (1

10 / Pass the Word

are often untruthfulsometimes through lying,sometimes through denying reality;

judge themselves harshly;

have trouble having fun;

take themselves very seriously;

have difficulty maintaining close relationships;

overreact to change;

constantly seek approval from others;

fear criticism, rejection and abandonment;

feel different from other people;

are super-responsible or super-irresponsible;

are extremely loyal even when that loyalty isundeserved,

look for immediate, as opposed to deferred,gratification;

lock themselves into courses of action without sericuslyconsidering alternatives or consequences;

seek tension and crisis, then complain;

deal poorly with conflict;

fear failure, but sabatoge success.

Some alcohol/drug abuse prevention and treatmentspecialists who work especially with Native Americanssuggest that, due to their history and the dose-knitnature of their culture, Indian communitieslikealcoholic familiesmay tend to develop certaincharacteristic illnesses when their environment includesalcoholism.

Jo Ann Kauffinan, past Executive Director of theSeattle Indian Health Board and founding President ofthe National Association for Native American Children ofAlcoholics, believes that alcoholism and its ao.:ompany-ing denial have contributed to the development of whatshe calls looped communication in Indian communities,

"Instead of dealing straight out with each other,"Kauffman says, "Indians often go round about. People

u:

11 / Pass the Word

frequently do iJot deal directly with each other. They donot say what they are really feeling. We, therefore, cometo feel that we are not getting straight answers from oneanother."

Kauffman says she also believes that the triballeader, who needs to control to the point of requiring astranglehold on decisions, is a community characteristicresulting from an alcoholic environment. Such leaders,she says, don't want anything to happen outside theircontrol because of fears thatif they let their vigilancedownthaos will result. This fear often develops fromliving in environments where adults are periodically outof control due to chemical dependency.

Kauffman also sees what she says is an Indiancommunity's tendency to avoid confrontation, a syndomeresulting from alcoholic environments. True, she admits,there i some traditional basis for avoiding direct conflictbut this tendency nas been magnified and distorted, shefeels, by alcoholism. "Indian communities," Kauffmansays, "often piny a placator role with state and federalgovernments. .Ve want to please. We do not want to makepeople in authority angry. This is consistent with attitudesdeveloped by many who grown up in chemicallydependent honns."

The idea of alcoholism as family and communityillness, Kauffman says, is very important. "It moves theconcept of the recovery process from an individual to acommunity-wide scope. It provides us the opportunity todeal with denial and isolation, which are two of thegreatest obstacles in the recovery from alcoholism."

"At the same time, it gives all of us an individualresponsibility for addressing alcoholism. If everyone inthe family and community is affected by the disease, theneveryone needs to address his/her own recovery.Everyone needs to face the pain that has occurred andthe pain that has been denied. We need to look at familyand community dynamics and we need to providetreatment for everyone not just the alcoholic."

ALCOHOLISM IS MULTIGENERATIONAL.

The effects of alcohol abuse carry over from onegeneration to another. This is not surprising.

12 1 Pass the Word

In a family in which alcoholism is a problem, thereare a lot of things missing. Family members have toconcentl ate a lot of energy on dealing with alcohol. Thisoften leaves them with not enough time or resources tomeet other needs.

For example, a parent who is drinking heavily orwho is managing a household around anothersdrinkingis frequently unavailable for all of the demandsof basic parenting. The child may thus be deprived ofimportant spiritual, emotional, social and psychologicalrequirements.

In addition, parents and family are a child's mostsignificant role models. A child learns much of his/herown behavior and skills from watching and imitating.Children raised without positive parenting and positivefamily role models are likely to find themseivesunprepared and ill-equipped for handling life's problemsand later for parenting their own children.

Individuals -end to parent their own children usingthe patter:is and techniques by which they themselveswere parented. We can only do what we know.

ALCOHOLISM IS LIKE AN ICEBERG.

Alcoholism is like the tip of an iceberg. It is not the wholething.

JoAnn Kauffman says alcoholism is like the outsidelayer of an onion. It often encircles many other layers ofproblems, each of which must be stripPed away in therecovery process.

Alcoholism, like a malignancy, must be dealt vOften it must be dealt with before other underlyingproblems can even be detected.

Kauffman sees recovery from alcoholism as abeginning, a base from which a community begins itsdetection and healing of other problems.

"The door of alcohol abuse confrontation must bepassed through," she says, "before Native Americans cansuccessfully enter doors through which we willaccomplish sound mental healtt., AIDS prevention, abuseand neglect prevention, economic development and self-sufficiency."

13 / Pass the Word

ALCOHOLISM COEXISTS WITH OTHER PROBLEMS.

A lot of recent research and clinical experience supportsKauffman's concept that alcoholism is just one part of anumber of co-existing problems.

For instance, a recent study by James ft Shore,Spero I% anson and others at the University of ColoradoHealth Sciences Center indicates that depression andalcoholism among American Indians are closelyassociated. The study suggests that in many NativeAmericans, the symptoms of primary depression may bemasked by acute and chronic alcoholism and thatsecondary depression in Native Americans is oftenrelated to a past history of alcoholism.

Some professionals, like those associated with theSwinomish Tribal Mental Health F'rogram, have suggestedthat alcoholism is part of a "triad of disturbance" inwhich alcohol abuse, depression and stress-related actingout commonly occur together in a complicated andinterlockirg manner.

The Swinomish program explains acting outbehatiors as unhealthy, destructive ways of releasingtension and responding to stress. Such behaviors mayinclude impulsive suicide attempts, domestic violence,rape, reckless driving, sexual transgressions, truancy,fighting and child abuse. The risk for acting out, theSwinomish F'rogram suggests, may be increased byalcohol abize. The program also suggests that acting outmay be a symptom of hidden depression, anunconscious attempt to avoid feeling emotional pain, oron the other hand, an attempt to keep from becomingimmobilized by depression.

In addition, recent research and prevention effortsare concentrating more and more on the idea thatalcoholism has been used in Indian communities as ameans of dealing with shame and self-hate which haveresulted from cultural oppression.

Conquest, religious persecution, forced assimilation,land allotment, broken trust, open ridicule and the board-ing school experiencein the eyes of somehave createda legacy: a legacy whose primary contribution to new gen-erations has been personal emotional problems createdtv the transmission of cultural shame and self-hate.

14 1 Pass the Word

Much of the transmission of cultural shame, Jo AnnKauffman suggests, has been subtle. How often, she asks,does a child hear? 'it you want to be something, youhave to move away from the reservation." How often hasan Indian child noticed that when elders talk aboutspirituality, they often speak secretively or in whispers?

Kauffman adds that cultural self-hate is evidencedand transmitted through the infighting and backbitingfrequently seen in Indian communities and Indianpolitics. Children witness these phenomena, shesuggests, and receive messages reinforcing culturalself-hate.

Gathering our resourcesWe Can Wini

Indian culture has some specialattributes which can help it in its

fight against alcohol ablise.

These attributes include triefamily and the extended fah-illy

network, community identity,and a holistic worldview.

In Indian communities, families are important andextended family networks exist.

Indian communities are close-knit. They havecontinued to maintain their identity through severe socialand economic pressure.

indian culture is holistic in nature. It sees theimportance of the balance between the mental,emotional, physical and spiritual. Indians do not draw adistinction between parts. Their worldviews are allencompassing in nature and broad in scope.

If alcoholism is a family and community disease, thenthe best resources to call upon in its defeat arefamilies and communities. Indians are fortunate thattheir family and community systems, unlike many othercultural groups in the US, still exist.

IR

16 / Pass the Word

* Alcohol Lai, research and experience now suggest, co-exists in an interlocking manner with a number ofother problems. As we recognize this, it becomeshelpful to realize that the effects of alcoholism alsoreach in an interdependent manner into the mental,emotional, physical and spiritual aspects of anindMdual.

This suggests that the best approach to preventionand treatment would be a holistic approach. Indians,unlike many in 'JS society, are easily able to orientthemselves to wholeness and the concept of the inter-relationship of parts.

Using our resourcesWhat Needs to Be Done?

a I

Several special challengesnow exist in the field

of Indian alcoholand substance abuse

prevention andtreatment. -1t17-4ri.

First, we need to recognize and utilize the changingattitudes in our communities. We need to continue tospread the belief that tribal people have a choice aboutalcohol and drugs. We need to promote and demon-strate the idea that abstinence is an acceptable option.

We need to assure that individuals who choose not touse alcohol and drugs are not left isolated and lonely.This will require a continuation of our grassrootsresponse. We will need to continue offering andpromoting dry drum pow-wows, sobriety campouts, andchemical-free celebrations of life.

We must continue accepting responsibility for our ownsobriety. We need to recognize our power and sharewith one another our successes. What works in Akhiok,Alaska, and Eagle Butte, SD, may work in other Inrgancommunities. Indian people must network theiistrategies and accomplishments.

We need to review our cultural strengths. We need torecognize and utilize our family and community

18 / Pass the Word

systems. We must review our parenting skills andtechniques and develop, where we feel necessary,parent training programs. We need to call upon ourholistic orientations.

We need, too, to look at our cultural heritage andIndian behaviors and iden1ity those aspects which maybe helping to perpetuate alcoholism and drug abuse.Does our Indian tendency to be non-confrontational, toalways be willing to help a brother or sister in troubleeven when that trouble results from the choice to drink,to be non-critical and non-demanding concerninganother's behavior: do these tendencies, positivethough they may be in some situations, help toperpetuate alcohol and drug abuse in Indiancommunities?

And, we need to take advantage of the movement wenow have going. We must roll up our sleeves and tacklealcohol and drug abuse with our own resources. Wemust not get discouraged as we uncover the manyserious problems which have till now been hiddenbeneath alcoholism and drug abuse.

Finally, we must maintain an optimism. We must haveconfidence. We must recognize our successes.

19 / Pass the Word

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:5

s

s

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We are headedin the rightdirection.

20

20 / Pass the Word

AcknowledgementsThis booklet was published by the Native American Develop-ment Corporation, a non-profit '.zix-exenlpt organization whollyowned and controlled by Nat:ve Americans. 7rogram and finan-cial management was previded by Arrow, Inc., a Native Ameri-can non-profit tax-exempt organization based in Washington,DC. Robert L. Bennett, NADC Vice President, supervised theproject.

Funds for the booklet were provided by the US Departmentof Education's Drug-Free Schools and Communities F'rogram.However, the contents do not necessarily represent opinions orpolicy of the Department of Education, and endorsement by thefederal government of the ideas presented should not beassumed.

The text was written by Nancy Gale based on a literaturereview and interviews with: JoAnn Kauffman, a health policyconsultant in Washington, DC, past Executive Director of theSeattle Indian Health Board and founding President of theNational Association for Native American Children of Alcoholics;Cheryl Watkins, Director of the Chemical Awareness TrainingInstitute in Phoenix, AZ; Anna Latimer, a trainer, consultant andtherapist and past Director of F'revention and Community Edu-cation at the Seattle Indian Health Board; and Dr. JenniferClarke of the Swinomish Tribal Community/Skagit CommunityMental Health Center in Mt. Vernon, WA.

Many of the examples offered are based, in part, on articlesand information contained in two infor Aation exchange bulle-tins published by TCI, Incorporated, an Indian-owned smallbusiness located in Washington, DC. The bulletins are: Linkagesfor Indian Child Welfare Programs and Indians against Alcoholand Drug Abuse. Nancy Gale is editor for these bulletins.

The photographs used in this booklet were taken by DannyGale. They were chosen to represent positive and healthy lives.

Copies of the booklet may be ordered, for printing andmailing costs, from the Native American Development Corpora-tion, 1000 Connecticut Avenue NW, Suite #1206, Washington,DC 20036. Telephone: (202) 296-0685.

2 4

Native American Development Corporation1000 Connecticut Avenue, NW., Suite 1206

Washington, DC 20046

64

Appendix 16

END

U.S. Dept. of Education

Office of EducationResearch and

Improvement (OERI)

ERIC

Date Filmed

March 29, 1991