Hacker News Reader

Comment by TrackerFF | Hacker News Reader

So it seems like alcohol/substance abuse is a problem in places with a large indigenous population. From native Americans, to Inuits on Greenland, to Aboriginals - it seems to be a well-documented phenomenon. Lots of lingering trauma all around, which is probably compounded in the more rural areas.

I remember when visiting Greenland a couple of years ago, the alcoholism was rampant there (along with racism, but that's another discussion), and apparently it was pretty common with smaller bans around surge periods (https://www.arctictoday.com/alcohol-is-banned-in-an-east-gre...)

View on HN

Correlation is not necessarily causation. Important to consider socioeconomic factors. Those populations are also often the most vulnerable and disadvantaged.

alcoholism was rampant there (along with racism, but that's another discussion)

I don't think it is. Just from this article:

“We’ve got to address poverty, inequality, unemployment, educational attainment, early childhood, trauma, the very things that we know make a big difference in terms of being able to live safely with alcohol but that will take time,”

Racism is a (the?) reason indigenous peoples face these issues to begin with.

For the readers silently dismissing the idea of racism being the problem, read this[1] about George Floyd. In a different world he would've been the heir of a family who owned a tobacco farm, not someone who grew up poor and harassed by cops.

But oh no, we can't mention "Critical Race Theory" lest some snowflakes get triggered...

[1] https://www.npr.org/2022/05/18/1099585400/george-floyd-biogr...

Its pretty clearly a vicious cycle. Racism is right in the loop too, because its a lot easier for people to adopt racist attitudes when communities that break along racial lines are undeniably having struggles with addiction.

Alcoholism is a problem in many indigenous communities, because alcohol affects many indigenous people much more severely than it affects people descended from Europe and Asia. But substance abuse is a problem more generally in pretty much all poor communities around the world, and also in pretty much any very isolated community where people are flat out bored all the time. And many, perhaps most indigenous communities have been intentionally fenced into poverty and isolation.

Alcohol/substance abuse is a problem in all places.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com