Third World Conditions in the U.S.A.

Thank you, P4A, for this opportunity.

The people of Pine Ridge Reservation are among the poorest people in the Western Hemisphere, second only to the people of Haiti. Yet they live in the USA. ONE Spirit is a non-profit service organization staffed entirely by volunteers which works to support the Lakota people of the reservation in meeting their basic needs, attempting to preserve their culture and revitalizing their communities.

90% of donations to ONE Spirit directly to program. The remainder goes toward the barest minimum of supplies. We do a lot of our work via phone and internet - our success made possible by technology.

This organization is passion driven - the passion to see a proud and beautiful people rise to flourish in this age while maintaining their heritage and culture.

On a personal note, please forgive any flubs and the voice of Yoda the cat in the background at one point. This is only my second attempt at this type of project, I didn't learn of P4A until earlier this week and my equipment is not up to true nerd standards. But I was driven by my own passion to try - because someone has to tell the rest of this country about these conditions. So forgive a rookie any lack of polish.

Category:

Nonprofits & Activism

Tags:

• P4A
• ONE Spirit
• Lakota
• Pine Ridge
• Pine Ridge reservation
• South Dakota
• Native American
• American Indian
• third world conditions
• poverty
• poor
• hunger
• hunger in America
• Sioux
• Oglala Lakota
• inspirational

[jonj450]

Maybe its time for Native American peoples to go back to living with nature, and living off of the land. If Native Americans reclaim their roots, they won't need white mans jobs. They'll have jobs in living off of nature. You hear so many people these days learning to live cheaper and better, with Cob House, Rocket Mass Heaters, Earth Shelters, Pallet Houses, and Straw Bale homes, and those are White people. Native American people know more then any other people about living with nature.

[bettyb22111896]

@jonj450 Many would welcome that. But, it takes money & resources to produce those homes. Pallets are usually manufactured by white companies, aren't they? & land they can live off of was stolen from them. The culture lived in portable houses & didn't own the land. Only way 4 people on Pine Ridge to live their old life would B if USA depopulates sev states, remove all infrastructure (railroads, for ex) & help regenerate buffalo herds w/millions of buffalo. Not gonna happen is my guess.

[jonj450]

And I'm with you on what you said about the Buffalo and the white companies. The only reason I say 'pallets' is because they leave the pallets everywhere, and people are picking them up now and they leave so many there are enough to build houses with them.

[jonj450]

There is a hole movement going on I think a lot of people don't know about. People are learning to live with nature. I'll try to give you a web site, but this site wont let me leave links. Have you heard of Cob Homes? Cob homes are homes that are build from clay, straw, and dirt, and they are beautiful, and they are almost free to build and you don't need a contractor to build one. People are building them on they're own, for almost nothing. YouTube has a lot of videos of Cob Houses

[teamvcheltenham]

This makes me sad :(

[21agave]

Happy thanks given

[614syn]

PRETTY NICE HOUSE TO ME... I LIVED IN A HOUSE IN WORSE CONDITIONS THAN THAT BUT I WAS TOO BUSY TRYING TO SURVIVE TO NOTICE..NEVER THOUGHT I WOULD MAKE IT OUT ALIVE..BUT I HAD WILL & DETERMINATION WHEN I THOUGHT I HAD NONE EVEN HAD NO SELF ESTEEEM....WOW AMAZING WHAT KIND OF MENTAL & PSYCHOLOGY ISSUES I HAD THEN...

[JRN1955]

This time of year is the season of giving. It is also a very hard time of the year for the people of Pine Ridge. Sadly many will not make it through the winter months. The temperatures will drop way below freezing and some will be burning floor boards to try to stay harm. No ONE in the U.S.A. should have to live this way. If the Government will not step up and keep it's promises. Is it not up to US as Americans to help take care of the First People. So much has been taken..Give Something Back

[ineeddailyvloggers]

DFTBA! #P4A

[lucylaughs]

dftba