Root causes of Red Lake mass killing need to be addressed


	Ministry efforts make changes Wiconi (Lakota for ‘life’) supports various cultural expressions as a part of biblical faith and developing healthy communities and is responding to this spiritual crisis to help make a difference in our Native youth through an exciting new strategy, Young Warrior Society Basketball Camps. From July 6 to 8, Wiconi will host its first camp on the campus of Cameron University in Lawton, Okla. in the heart of Indian Country. First, basketball is a hugely popular sport all across Native North America. The full-throttle style of play is recognized as “Indian ball.” All-Indian tournaments are held across the country each year. It is a natural bridge into the life flow of Native youth today. Second, though many basketball camps are held each year in reservation communities, rarely do they have a Christ-centered focus. The Wiconi staff has more than 30 years of combined experience in organizing and running Christ-centered youth basketball camps. In addition, the ministry is hosting its second annual Family Camp and first ever inter-tribal Christian pow-wow. The Family Camp will be held at the Aldersgate Conference Center in Turner, Ore., just outside Salem, from Aug. 25 to 28. “Combating the crisis of addictive behaviors, low self-esteem, suicide and the wounds of abuse, demands that an enormous amount of financial, social, emotional, and psychological energies are spent battling these realities,” Twiss said. “Though we know we can’t change the realities of life at home or the socio-economic conditions on the reservations, yet ministries such as Wiconi’s Young Warrior Society Basketball Camps and the ‘Living Waters’ Family Camp will provide an opportunity to add quality of life to those who need it.” Is there hope for Native teen-agers and families living in crises? Yes. Hopefully, many families can be reached to prevent another tragedy like the Red Lake shootings. But we’ve got to get past the symptoms and get to the root causes. Getting Native youth reconnected with their Creator-God will help them find hope, healing and honor. For more information on the camps, including how to sponsor a teen, call Wiconi International at (360) 546-1867.

The death of 10 people resulting from a shooting spree by a disturbed student on the Red Lake Reservation in northern Minnesota sent shockwaves across North America. The suspect in the worst U.S. school shooting since the Columbine shootings in Littleton, Colo. killed five students, a teacher and a guard, before turning the gun on himself.

What would cause this Native American teen-ager to go on a rampage, killing his grandfather, his grandfather’s companion, and then go to his high school and randomly shoot his classmates, teacher and staff, before killing himself?

Early media reports indicated that 17-year-old Jeff Weise was in violation of a school rule. He’d been placed in Red Lake High School’s “Homebound program” for the policy violation, according to school board member Kathryn Beaulieu. She told the Associated Press the day after the schooling that “students in that program stay home and are tutored by a mobile teacher.” Beaulieu said she didn’t know what Weise’s violation was, and couldn’t say if she did.

Certain media reports were quick to point out that Weise was involved with neo-Nazi groups and that he was a frequent visitor to Web sites which incite violence against Christians and their churches, Jews and Muslims. At this time, there’s also evidence that others may have been involved in planning this tragedy. The tribal chief’s son was recently taken into custody and questioned concerning his possible involvement in this shooting spree.

Unfortunately, it’s difficult, if not impossible, to find any report indicating what really may have caused this young man to act as he did.

It’s apparent from reports of friends, school officials, neighbors and family members, that Jeff Weise was a troubled young man dealing with a lot of pain and grief in his life. His father committed suicide four years ago and his mother was severely injured in an accident resulting in brain damage and is in a nursing home.

According to his aunt, Weise’s personality changed dramatically after the death of his father and his mother’s accident. His recent school violation may have been just one more symptom of his desperate search for peace in his traumatized life.

Alarming statistics
In the face of declining national crime rates, violent crimes are increasing in many Native communities. The U.S. Bureau of Prisons stated that custody of Native youth has increased 50 percent since 1994.

Though possessed with such a rich history, beautiful intact culture, and inherent spirituality, there is huge cause for alarm among our First Nations youth. They face the invasion in their lives of rampant sexual and physical abuse, gangs, violence, alcohol and drug abuse, mostly stemming from broken families. The situation on the Red Lake Reservation is similar to that on many of our reservations throughout North America.

As a result, Native youth have the highest incidence of suicide in the Western Hemisphere and in some northern communities literal suicide epidemics have broken out. However, this is neither their legacy nor their Creator-given destiny in this world.

Harsh realities
Consider the impact that Jeff Weise’s loss of his father had on him, compounded by the tragic injury to his mother. The reality is that these are causes that affect the very souls of our youth.

Recently deceased writer Arthur Holmes, an Ojibwe, knew what grief does to Native American people. Writing in his bestselling book “The Grieving Indian” (Indian Life Books, 1988), he makes the comparison between death among his people and the way people in the dominant society die.

According to Holmes, a member of the St. Croix Band in Wisconsin, “the average North American is expected to live 74.5 years, while the typical native person, with an expectancy of 44.5, has thirty years less.” Holmes goes on to say that the ways of death are equally startling. “In dominant society, it is generally accepted that 80 percent of the population will die anticipated deaths, with only 20 percent falling victim to an unexpected, violent end. When we look at the native scene, these figures are totally reversed. Based on informal surveys and a life of involvement within my own native community, I estimate that only 20 percent of natives die anticipated deaths, while 80 percent lose their lives through such violent, unanticipated means as car crashes, murders, suicides, fires, drowning, and freezing to death.”

Is there any hope?
Many may look at the March 21 tragedy in Red Lake and wonder what the solution is. Is there any hope for our youth?

Richard Twiss, president of Wiconi International believes there is.

“Native youth need holistic teaching and support in facing immense social, cultural and spiritual problems,” he said.

A Lakota from the Rosebud reservation in South Dakota, Twiss’s early life was similar in many ways to the lives of many of today’s Native youth. Involved with alcohol and drugs, Twiss became active in the American Indian Movement in the 1970s. He participated in the occupation of the Bureau of Indian Affairs building in Washington, D.C.

Positive identities
Native youth need a positive attitude toward cultural and tribal identity. Twiss said that Native people have a God-given cultural and tribal identity. It is meant to be used to express the very purpose for which the Creator put them on the earth, bringing glory and honor to God through Jesus Christ. To deny this cultural heritage is to deny God’s “handiwork” in them.

Twiss said he believes we need to teach our young people that they have intrinsic value and a purpose for their lives.

“Using natural gifts and talents wisely is right; wasting potential is wrong,” Twiss said. “Integrity as a core tribal value is something that’s being lost for many of our youth.

“We also need to teach our young people the value of parental authority and respect for elders. It’s OK to honor your parents and wrong to rebel against them. Though much dysfunction exists in reservation families, it is right to respect parents and honor tribal elders.”

Twiss said there’s also value in serving others.

“Teaching youth to help others less fortunate is right while following selfish interests is wrong. Service to others protects youth from self-centeredness, gives satisfaction, and greater meaning to life.”

Jim Uttley, is communications coordinator for Wiconi International, and is the Native American Affairs correspondent for Assist News Service.

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