Local View: Together, we can begin to undo harm of Whiteclay

The closure of Whiteclay’s beer stores on April 30, 2017, was a significant victory for those wishing to stop Nebraska’s complicity in the flow of cheap beer onto the dry Pine Ridge Indian Reservation. But it was only the first step. Since the beer store closures, little has been done by Nebraskans to mitigate the harm inflicted on Oglala Lakotans by decades of Whiteclay beer sales.

Our research shows that drunken-driving crashes and fatalities are down in Sheridan County since the closure of Whiteclay's beer stores. So are felony case filings. Whiteclay's violence and vagrancy did not migrate to other Nebraska border towns, contrary to assertions made by those who fought to keep the beer stores open. Sales tax revenue is up throughout Sheridan County since the beer stores closed, including in Whiteclay, where tribal members once again feel safe to shop for groceries.

While there are many reasons to celebrate the closure of Whiteclay’s beer stores, there remains so much work left to be done. Oglala Lakotans who were permitted to drink on Whiteclay’s streets have returned to Pine Ridge. But too many still have not received treatment for their trauma or their addiction. Too many still lack adequate economic opportunities. As Nebraskans and former Nebraskans, we can do more.

Over the past two years, we have secured 50 acres of property on the south end of Whiteclay. Our objective is to create a footprint where Nebraska’s public health institutions can collaborate with Oglala Lakotans and other Native health care professionals to bring long-term restorative services to an unincorporated town with 12 residents whose four beer stores were once responsible for the sale of over 3.5 million cans of beer every year.

One parcel, the former Lakota Hope Center, is currently being utilized by Anpetu Luta Otipi, the Oglala Lakota Nation’s comprehensive alcohol substance abuse and treatment program. There are opportunities for public health institutions, such as the Creighton University School of Medicine and University of Nebraska Medical Center, to sublease space on the property, including three tiny houses that could be finished out and rented on a short- or long-term basis.

Another parcel consists of 45 acres of undeveloped land directly across the street. This past winter, leaders executed a memorandum of understanding with Thunder Valley Community Development Corp., a tribal corporation whose mission is to empower Lakota families to improve the health of their communities through the strengthening of their cultural identity. Thunder Valley has already successfully developed a 34-acre tract of land in Pine Ridge that provides vocational training, language preservation programs and a pathway to home ownership to Oglala Lakota residents.

Through this memorandum of understanding, our intent is to transfer to Thunder Valley these 45 acres in Whiteclay for the purpose of creating a campus that could include outpatient substance abuse treatment services, transitional housing, permanent supportive housing and other restorative services for those working to overcome addiction. World-class services and facilities, owned and operated by a tribal entity.

One last parcel has been reserved for the creation of a history center and outdoor memorial to honor those whose lives and life potential were cut short by Whiteclay beer sales. The history center would not only create employment opportunities in the area but also serve as a meeting place for Natives and non-Natives seeking to collaborate on a variety of topics, including the issue of missing and murdered indigenous women.

Whiteclay’s beer store closures were a source a pride for many Nebraskans. Keeping beer stores from returning to Whiteclay should not be left to chance. Working with Oglala Lakotans to create a restorative campus in Whiteclay is the best way to ensure those beer stores remain closed. But it will only happen if Nebraska’s state senators, public health institutions and benefactors step up and answer the call. Real mitigation means making real commitments to those tribal entities that are working to make Whiteclay’s restorative campus a reality.

The COVID pandemic may have slowed our progress over this past year, but it has not diminished our drive. We are as determined as ever to help Oglala Lakotans create a restorative campus in Whiteclay that will transform the narrative of this unincorporated town from a place of death and destruction to a place of hope and healing. Together, we can begin to mitigate the past harm done by this place.

John A. Maisch is an associate professor of legal studies at the University of Central Oklahoma. The Nebraska native served as Oklahoma’s liquor prosecutor and produced the documentary "Sober Indian | Dangerous Indian" about Whiteclay’s beer sales.