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Do Casinos Help Native Americans?
Thursday, January 24, 2008 : The arguments for and against the Indian Gaming agreement Propositions 94, 95, 96 and 97, has prompted me to reexamine an underlying assumption about Indian gaming. That is, does California's $7 billion Indian gaming industry substantially benefit California Indians economically and socially? There are 105 tribal entities in California with approximately 56,158 tribal members.
There are 31 gaming tribal casinos. Yes, Indian gaming revenue has been used to build houses, schools, roads and sewer and water systems and to fund health care and education for California's gaming tribes and to a lesser extent, its non-gaming tribes. However, there remains a large economic and social disparity between California Indians and those of other Americans.Read More
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http://www.beyondchron.org/news/index.php?...
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This is a bullshit argument.
You yourself admit that money generated by gaming has improved the conditions of life on many reservations. Before gaming no industries wanted to go anywhere near reservations. Many reservations are incredibly impoverished and see gaming money as the only way to improve their communities basic needs and infrastructure. Yes, of course, more could be done. But your argument seems to throw the baby out with the bath water.
A few casinos, even 7 billion dollars worth, cannot undo 300 years of brutal repression. The reasons for the economic conditions you see on reservations are a direct result of the US government's war against Indian people. Now that Indians have found a way to make some money and improve their communities they get attacked.
Its ok when poor people go crawling to state subsidized non-profits for help (like Beyond Chron's benefactor TLC). But when poor folks take matters into their own hands and develop ways to improve their own conditions they get accused of not doing enough....as if those high unemployment and crime rates were our own fault.
There are plenty of reasons to oppose these propositions. Tribal dis-enrollment from major gaming tribes being one the big ones that pops into my head. But to make the argument that more could and should be done with gaming money and then at the same time advocate for limiting expansion of the casinos just doesn't make sense. Your tyeing the hands of the tribes and hindering their ability to generate more revenue with which to improve the conditions that you raised.
You yourself admit that money generated by gaming has improved the conditions of life on many reservations. Before gaming no industries wanted to go anywhere near reservations. Many reservations are incredibly impoverished and see gaming money as the only way to improve their communities basic needs and infrastructure. Yes, of course, more could be done. But your argument seems to throw the baby out with the bath water.
A few casinos, even 7 billion dollars worth, cannot undo 300 years of brutal repression. The reasons for the economic conditions you see on reservations are a direct result of the US government's war against Indian people. Now that Indians have found a way to make some money and improve their communities they get attacked.
Its ok when poor people go crawling to state subsidized non-profits for help (like Beyond Chron's benefactor TLC). But when poor folks take matters into their own hands and develop ways to improve their own conditions they get accused of not doing enough....as if those high unemployment and crime rates were our own fault.
There are plenty of reasons to oppose these propositions. Tribal dis-enrollment from major gaming tribes being one the big ones that pops into my head. But to make the argument that more could and should be done with gaming money and then at the same time advocate for limiting expansion of the casinos just doesn't make sense. Your tyeing the hands of the tribes and hindering their ability to generate more revenue with which to improve the conditions that you raised.
It seems these types of "initiatives" should not even be on a ballot.
Also, why should tribes have to enter into an agreement in the first place?
It seems all the groups (pro and con) are co-opting is for their own goals without any deeper analysis.
Maybe certain Corporations should have to enter into compacts to share their revenues as well as they seem to get out of paying taxes that other must pay through various incentives and loopholes.
Also, why should tribes have to enter into an agreement in the first place?
It seems all the groups (pro and con) are co-opting is for their own goals without any deeper analysis.
Maybe certain Corporations should have to enter into compacts to share their revenues as well as they seem to get out of paying taxes that other must pay through various incentives and loopholes.
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