ZZZZZZero Tolerance...
Sunday July 11, 2010 - As you walk through the doors of any of our numerous tribal
buildings, it isn’t hard to notice our tribe’s ‘zero-tolerance’ policy inscribed in black and
white. This statement is posted to give our workers and citizens a sense of protection
amongst our Community. However, with the absence of appropriate supportive action,
these postings become nothing more than trivial pieces of paper with meaningless
words.
Presently it seems our government‘s ‘zero-tolerance’ policy has become lazily void
and the effects of this void are frighteningly clear. This slack approach threatens to
compromise the very fabric of our social well-being and has even manifested itself in
our own government. Sitting in the audience at our Council Meetings, one can
occasionally witness our government officials verbally ridicule and mistreat one
another. At times our government proceedings take a backseat to this juvenile
behavior and the citizen is left as a reluctant witness. In politics, understandably there
will be disagreements, as each of our elected officials are representative to a unique
genre of voters. However, as leaders of our Nation, it is their ultimate responsibility to
uphold their office with the utmost integrity and respect.
One of these instances which clings to the top of my mind, is an incident involving the
Tribal Operations Manager getting into a shouting match with our Tribal Treasurer. I
don’t know what spiraled my disbelief more, the fact that a subordinate employee
presented herself in such a manner before our Tribal Council, or merely because this
behavior was tolerated.
Not only have these tasteless displays of misconduct disrupted our government
proceedings, they have also found their way into our tribal businesses. As you may
have read in a previous story, there was an employee who brought forth sexual
harassment allegations against upper management at our Casino Lodge. These
allegations were heard before Council. Although a determination was made; one can
only speculate the bottom line, as the particular manager involved is still currently
employed.
Unfortunately this past week our Community also found itself victim to our government
‘s lax enforcement of policy, as tribal officials uncovered a ‘stash’ of perverse
pornographic material in our Community Center Gymnasium. The severity of our
Community problem has now reached a new low; not only are adults exposed to such
lewd perverse behavior, but now potentially our children are as well.
In addition to our Community Center being a child oriented environment (Trails, Boys
& Girls Club, Head Start, etc.), this facility also houses government programs (Indian
Child Welfare, Social Services) and serves our Community as a gathering place for our
families to hold potlucks, religious ceremonies, and wakes. With so many people
coming and going, the thought that only a thin wall and an open door is the only
separation from these perversions is very unnerving.
Upon these discoveries our Community was also made aware of a camera system in
our gymnasium, which distributes live video feeds into the room in mention. This
revelation is unsettling, since these cameras and monitoring equipment serve no
purpose and their very presence conflicts with some of our traditional ceremonies
which are often held in this public facility.
We as citizens have a basic human right to feel safe and protected. Whether we are
employees of our tribe or not, we all share in this inalienable right. While we most
certainly do not live in a lawless, uncivilized community, there are instances which
sometimes arise that need to be addressed and handled with attentive care. Our
Community is a wonderful place to live, and truth be told, I would live no place else.
However, we must remember it is the way we rise to these occasions and handle these
remote incidents that truly define the way we govern ourselves.
Sunday July 11, 2010 - As you walk through the doors of any of our numerous tribal
buildings, it isn’t hard to notice our tribe’s ‘zero-tolerance’ policy inscribed in black and
white. This statement is posted to give our workers and citizens a sense of protection
amongst our Community. However, with the absence of appropriate supportive action,
these postings become nothing more than trivial pieces of paper with meaningless
words.
Presently it seems our government‘s ‘zero-tolerance’ policy has become lazily void
and the effects of this void are frighteningly clear. This slack approach threatens to
compromise the very fabric of our social well-being and has even manifested itself in
our own government. Sitting in the audience at our Council Meetings, one can
occasionally witness our government officials verbally ridicule and mistreat one
another. At times our government proceedings take a backseat to this juvenile
behavior and the citizen is left as a reluctant witness. In politics, understandably there
will be disagreements, as each of our elected officials are representative to a unique
genre of voters. However, as leaders of our Nation, it is their ultimate responsibility to
uphold their office with the utmost integrity and respect.
One of these instances which clings to the top of my mind, is an incident involving the
Tribal Operations Manager getting into a shouting match with our Tribal Treasurer. I
don’t know what spiraled my disbelief more, the fact that a subordinate employee
presented herself in such a manner before our Tribal Council, or merely because this
behavior was tolerated.
Not only have these tasteless displays of misconduct disrupted our government
proceedings, they have also found their way into our tribal businesses. As you may
have read in a previous story, there was an employee who brought forth sexual
harassment allegations against upper management at our Casino Lodge. These
allegations were heard before Council. Although a determination was made; one can
only speculate the bottom line, as the particular manager involved is still currently
employed.
Unfortunately this past week our Community also found itself victim to our government
‘s lax enforcement of policy, as tribal officials uncovered a ‘stash’ of perverse
pornographic material in our Community Center Gymnasium. The severity of our
Community problem has now reached a new low; not only are adults exposed to such
lewd perverse behavior, but now potentially our children are as well.
In addition to our Community Center being a child oriented environment (Trails, Boys
& Girls Club, Head Start, etc.), this facility also houses government programs (Indian
Child Welfare, Social Services) and serves our Community as a gathering place for our
families to hold potlucks, religious ceremonies, and wakes. With so many people
coming and going, the thought that only a thin wall and an open door is the only
separation from these perversions is very unnerving.
Upon these discoveries our Community was also made aware of a camera system in
our gymnasium, which distributes live video feeds into the room in mention. This
revelation is unsettling, since these cameras and monitoring equipment serve no
purpose and their very presence conflicts with some of our traditional ceremonies
which are often held in this public facility.
We as citizens have a basic human right to feel safe and protected. Whether we are
employees of our tribe or not, we all share in this inalienable right. While we most
certainly do not live in a lawless, uncivilized community, there are instances which
sometimes arise that need to be addressed and handled with attentive care. Our
Community is a wonderful place to live, and truth be told, I would live no place else.
However, we must remember it is the way we rise to these occasions and handle these
remote incidents that truly define the way we govern ourselves.
