Published: Friday, March 6, 2009
Tulalips may limit alcohol sales
TULALIP -- It soon could be illegal to sell beer, wine and other alcohol anywhere west of Quil Ceda Village on the Tulalip Indian Reservation.
Alcohol sales would still be allowed in Quil Ceda Village, the Tulalip Tribes' casino and shopping area, but the change in tribal policy would bar restaurants and businesses there from advertising alcohol on signs.
The Tulalip Grassroots Committee, an organization of tribal members, plans to propose the initiative at the tribal General Council meeting this month. Tribal members will vote immediately on the initiative. If approved by a majority of American Indians at the meeting, the tribal Board of Directors would be compelled by the tribal constitution to approve it.
"Indians have a lifelong battle with alcohol," said Les Parks, who leads the Tulalip Grassroots Committee.
The initiative would be enacted under the Tulalip tribal government, which has sovereign jurisdiction over tribal land. It is designed to rid the reservation of opportunities for young Indians to fall into alcoholism, Parks said.
If the initiative is approved, the state-run liquor store near the Tulalip Casino would be forced to remove signs from its window, Parks said. Two small stores near the reservation's western edge would no longer be allowed to sell beer and other alcohol.
"Times are tough already," said Jon Rickert, owner of Bob's Burgers & Brew in Quil Ceda Village. "I'd hate it if they took our signs, too."
Rickert worries that if the initiative passes, the second half of his restaurant's name would have to go.
"Hopefully we'll be grandfathered in," he said. "If not, that would be a shocker."
Indians are prone to turn to alcohol if they live in reservations that don't offer them other options for entertainment, said Emer Simpson of The Healing Lodge, an alcohol abuse treatment center for Indians in Spokane.
"I see remote areas, not a lot of opportunities, and a lot of boredom with the kids, so through peer pressure they turn to alcohol," she said.
Alcoholism has been a problem for Indians since pioneers offered them alcohol, then used the Indians' addictions to control them, Simpson said.
Nearly 12 percent of all Indian deaths are linked to alcohol, according to a recent study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. That's about twice the rate of alcohol-related deaths for the rest of the U.S. population.
Tulalip tribal members are scheduled to vote on the initiative, among others, on March 14, when they will also convene to elect two people to their seven-member Board of Directors. The Grassroots Committee plans to present a handful of separate initiatives during the meeting in an effort to lower the age of elders from 62 to 55, create a community park district and ensure that the tribal government hires tribal members and other Indians for services.
Krista J. Kapralos: 425-339-3422, kkapralos@heraldnet.com.
Alcohol sales would still be allowed in Quil Ceda Village, the Tulalip Tribes' casino and shopping area, but the change in tribal policy would bar restaurants and businesses there from advertising alcohol on signs.
The Tulalip Grassroots Committee, an organization of tribal members, plans to propose the initiative at the tribal General Council meeting this month. Tribal members will vote immediately on the initiative. If approved by a majority of American Indians at the meeting, the tribal Board of Directors would be compelled by the tribal constitution to approve it.
"Indians have a lifelong battle with alcohol," said Les Parks, who leads the Tulalip Grassroots Committee.
The initiative would be enacted under the Tulalip tribal government, which has sovereign jurisdiction over tribal land. It is designed to rid the reservation of opportunities for young Indians to fall into alcoholism, Parks said.
If the initiative is approved, the state-run liquor store near the Tulalip Casino would be forced to remove signs from its window, Parks said. Two small stores near the reservation's western edge would no longer be allowed to sell beer and other alcohol.
"Times are tough already," said Jon Rickert, owner of Bob's Burgers & Brew in Quil Ceda Village. "I'd hate it if they took our signs, too."
Rickert worries that if the initiative passes, the second half of his restaurant's name would have to go.
"Hopefully we'll be grandfathered in," he said. "If not, that would be a shocker."
Indians are prone to turn to alcohol if they live in reservations that don't offer them other options for entertainment, said Emer Simpson of The Healing Lodge, an alcohol abuse treatment center for Indians in Spokane.
"I see remote areas, not a lot of opportunities, and a lot of boredom with the kids, so through peer pressure they turn to alcohol," she said.
Alcoholism has been a problem for Indians since pioneers offered them alcohol, then used the Indians' addictions to control them, Simpson said.
Nearly 12 percent of all Indian deaths are linked to alcohol, according to a recent study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. That's about twice the rate of alcohol-related deaths for the rest of the U.S. population.
Tulalip tribal members are scheduled to vote on the initiative, among others, on March 14, when they will also convene to elect two people to their seven-member Board of Directors. The Grassroots Committee plans to present a handful of separate initiatives during the meeting in an effort to lower the age of elders from 62 to 55, create a community park district and ensure that the tribal government hires tribal members and other Indians for services.
Krista J. Kapralos: 425-339-3422, kkapralos@heraldnet.com.
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