Pine Ridge Suicides

“To be Lakota in this world is a challenge because they want to maintain their own culture, but they’re being told their culture is not successful,” Mr. Hamilton said.

Children on Indian reservations, he added, have extraordinary challenges: the legacy of oppression and forced removals, the lack of jobs and economic opportunity, and the high levels of drug and alcohol use around them.

“The federal government has dropped the ball in terms of mental health resources,” Mr. Hamilton said. “The system is overwhelmed. No matter which reservation you go to, that’s what you’ll find.”

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