 |
NATIONAL METHAMPHETAMINE TRAINING & TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE CENTER
Focus on ...
Focus on ...
Indian Country
Indian Country: High meth use rates
-- National studies of “past year methamphetamine use” found these rates:
2.2% - Native Hawaiians
1.7% - American Indians/Alaskan Natives
0.7% - Whites
0.5% - Hispanics
0.2% - Asians
0.1% - African-Americans
-- In May 2006, the White Mountain Apache Tribe in Arizona testified in front of the Senate Indian Affairs Committee that 30% of their Tribal employees recently tested positive for meth use (Donna Vigil in Senate testimony). This is particularly disturbing as Tribal employees are often the community leaders, and because of testing limitations, this number is actually believed to be an underestimate of use.
-- Nearly three-quarters (74%) of tribal police forces rank meth as greatest drug threat. The Bureau of Indian Affairs Office of Law Enforcement Services surveyed Tribes with whom they work closely on law enforcement (Bureau of Indian Affairs survey 96 law enforcement agencies)
-- An informal survey of the seven FBI offices located primarily in Indian Country estimated that approximately 40-50% of violent crime cases investigated in Indian Country involve meth in some capacity. This is particularly disconcerting since Indian Country already experiences a violent crime rate 2 ½ times the general population (Bureau of Justice Statistics).
-- More than six in 10 (64%) of the BIA Study respondents indicated increases in domestic violence and assault/battery as a result of increases in methamphetamines in their community.
-- The National Indian Child Welfare Association (NICWA) estimates that 80-85% of the Indian families in child welfare systems have drug or alcohol abuse issues. The recent increase in child related meth cases in Indian Country, however, seems to be in child neglect cases rather than child abuse.
-- Nationwide 48% of Tribal law enforcement respondents in the BIA Law Enforcement Survey reported an increase in child neglect/abuse cases due to recent increases in meth use.
For example, the Yavapai-Apache Nation in Arizona estimates that approximately 90% of their open child welfare cases are related to methamphetamine. In California, the California Indian Legal Services (CILS) estimates nearly every single case they work with in which an Indian child is taken from their home, one or both of the parents is using methamphetamine, or the baby itself was born exposed to methamphetamine.
Limited Health Care/Meth Treatment Resources
69% Of Tribal Respondents in the BIA Study Indicated That They Had No Tribal Sponsored Meth Rehab Centers. There are very limited treatment resources or facilities available in Indian Country.
 |
Indian Country
 |
|
|
|
|
