Initial Report and Recommendations - Alaska Department of Law

The Commission emphasizes that alcohol abuse and alcoholism in rural Alaskaare not Native problems, per se, but rather problems for Natives and non-Natives alike.But the Commission also acknowledges that over 66 percent of the population in ruralAlaska is Native 8 and that recommendations in this report that mention the importance ofculturally appropriate approaches predominantly focus on Alaska Natives. Many may beadopted for non-Natives living in rural Alaska as well.The consequences of substance abuse and the corresponding importance offinding effective means to prevent alcohol and other drugs from reaching rural Alaskacommunities that have, through local option laws, decided to ban, partially or wholly,alcohol 9 are important threads in the fabric of society in rural Alaska, as they have beenin the Commission’s work over the last 10 months. Numerous statistics point to thecontinuing – and in many cases growing – overrepresentation of Alaska Natives fromrural Alaska among children in need of aid, victims and perpetrators of domestic violenceand sexual assault, and other crimes. The percentage of Native children under the care ofthe Office of Children’s Services hovers close to 50 percent and the numbers of Nativeyouth and adults in Alaska’s juvenile justice and correctional systems are similarlydisproportionately large. The justice systems in rural Alaska struggle to find locally andculturally appropriate ways to manage offenders in a way that minimizes negativeimpacts to families and communities and strives to restore harmony quickly. There arefrequent “disconnects” between tribal and State court systems, and disputes overjurisdiction continue throughout rural Alaska. In the meantime, rural residents criticizethe inadequacies of current law enforcement and public safety in much of rural Alaska,but an affordable and acceptable resolution has yet to be found.Domestic violence, child abuse, child neglect, and sexual assault are majorproblems in rural Alaska. The following quote highlights the experiences of one Alaskanresearcher:In Alaska, we often see abusive partners who have relocated their familiesto remote communities to isolate them from the support of their friendsand family, and to more easily track and control their movements. Victimsmay be held hostage in their own homes with no winter clothing or meansof escaping their extreme isolation. Deprivation and isolation becomepowerful tools to control victims.One survivor, who shares her story to help others understand the dynamicsof abuse in rural communities, described how her husband stranded herand their new baby at a remote fish camp for several weeks withoutenough food, medications and other essentials. Eventually, she was able toescape her abusive marriage and became a domestic violence outreachworker to remote villages in the Arctic. Although she struggles withdebilitating, long-term health problems secondary to the abuse, shesurvived. Her former husband murdered his next wife.89See Section B.2 of this Chapter for the relevant population statistics.Alaska’s Local Option law has five categories: (1) Sale by community license only, (2) Sale by selectedlicenses only, (3) Ban sale, (4) Ban Sale and importation, and (5) Ban possession. For a detailed historyof alcohol control in Alaska see http://www.iser.uaa.alaska.edu/Publications/Alcohol_Arctic.pdfAlaska Rural Justice and Law Enforcement Commission - Page 8