After the meth bust in Dilkon that involved an 81-year old grandmother, many communities and elderly people have expressed that they are scared of being arrested because their grandchildren may be making meth without them knowing. 

"They want presentations so they know about meth," said Lynette Willie, Public Information Officer for the Navajo Nation Department of Behavioral Health Services. Ironically enough, the DBHS program just completed an educational video this past week in the Navajo language that will do this. 

The video has already been copied to DVDs and been passed out to chapter houses, senior citizen centers, and any other entities requesting them. The program is planning to get the DVD put on VHS this week for people and organizations who do not have the equipment to play DVDs. 

"We ended up being asked by five senior citizen centers for the video (this past week)," said Willie. The Department of Behavioral Health's focus is to educate people on what meth is, how they can identify it, and how they can help put a stop to it. While alcohol remains a plague on the Navajo Nation, Willie believes that meth could be even more devastating. 

"This is possibly the greatest modern day enemy (to the Navajo people)," said Willie. "This has the potential to be worse than alcohol." While meth is a rising problem in the United States, it is even a more prevalent problem among communities of color, including American Indians. 

According to the Assistant Surgeon General, Director of Indian Health Service Charles W. Grimm, D.D.S., M.H.S.A., American Indians and Alaska Natives are 720 percent more likely to die from alcohol than the rest of the United States. And if meth has the potential to be worse, the nation is facing a huge crisis. 

Char James, DBHS Program Project Specialist specifically for meth, realized that a lot of people didn't understand English, and therefore could not understand the information being sent out on meth videos and pamphlets in English. This obviously created a barrier in education, and in light of this, DBHS put together a script, where James educates people about meth in Navajo. 

"We can't just distribute printed material," said Willie. In 2004, a video titled, "'G'-Methamphetamine on the Navajo Nation," won the Best Public Service Award at the 20th Annual American Indian Film Festival in 2004. The video was produced and sponsored by Tuba City Regional, Health Care Corporation, and Health Promotion Program. Now there is a video available to those who speak Navajo. 

The video, which is over an hour long, goes into detail showing people the different types of paraphernalia that is used to take meth, such as light bulbs and pipes. In the video, James teaches people what symptoms and signs that meth causes and what type of objects that are suspicious. The video emphasizes how some bags containing meth may look harmless and even sometimes have Walt Disney characters or cartoons on them, but contain the drug. It also educates people about slang words used for meth. 

"If their grandchild is talking about ice in the middle of the summer, then they are not talking about winter," said Willie. 

Joining forces to combat meth

James has been doing presentations all over the reservation since August 2004, and Willie estimates that over 80,000 people on the Navajo Nation have been educated so far. 

"We'll hit even more people (with the video)," said Willie. With Internet access available now through OnSat in every chapter house across the reservation, Willie said communities can also download videos and Powerpoint presentations on meth. 

Because of the large size of the Navajo Nation, DBHS has joined forces with entities, such as the Navajo Housing Authority, the Navajo Nation police, chapter house communities, schools, and senior citizen centers. With only 188 DBHS employees and over 180,000 people on the Navajo Nation, the program needs all the help it can get. 

Some communities have taken upon it themselves to form a task force to help combat meth. According to Willie, there are currently five task force units across the Navajo Nation, including Tuba City, Fort Defiance, Dilkon, Shiprock, and Chinle. There were 15 total task forces across the nation two years ago, but the numbers have trickled down since. DBHS has plans to revamp some of the task forces that have become dormant, such as the Gallup task force. 

In January 2004, meth became especially prevalent in the Tuba City area. A surgeon at Tuba City Hospital was seeing numerous patients with unusual heart complications. When the surgeon realized that the cause was meth, he immediately contacted DBHS to begin steps towards addressing the issue. Because of these heart complications, Willie said that 17 people in the Tuba City area alone died from the substance. 

Around this same time, Marcus Tully of the Navajo Housing Authority also started noticing more social problems with the tenants, such as violent behavior. However, at that time, nothing could be done to address meth head-on because it was not against the law to use or sell the substance. This is when the entities began to examine the issue closely, search for solutions and push the law to legislation. 

"There's a lot of use in more remote areas," said Willie. Willie said that many Navajo people initially thought that the problem was in Window Rock because it is closer to border towns where people had more access to the drug. But after visiting chapter houses across the reservation, people began to speak up and realize the problem did exist in their community. Willie said because people are using meth within their homes, they are harder to bust. 

As far as officials can tell, meth is not being made on the reservation, but is being brought in from cities like Phoenix and Albuquerque. People buy an "eight ball" from the city and sell it for three times the amount on the reservation, said Willie. So far, Willie said that there have been no super labs, or labs of any sort, discovered on the Navajo Nation. However, she said that people might be taking homemade labs apart quickly when police officials are in their residential area. 

For a long period of time, 13 years old was the youngest age on record and 50 years old was the oldest for meth usage. Now, the youngest case of documented meth usage is 8 years old and the oldest is 81 years old. Meth is also being used as a date rape drug, where the substance is being put into drinks. 

"A lot of girls say they get it for free," said Willie. The substance is also being injected by needle, which could potentially increase the spread of sexually transmitted diseases, including HIV. 

Education for everyone

Along with educating communities, DBHS is also educating some business entities, like hotels and motel, about meth paraphernalia. The Days Inn hotel staff at St. Micheals was educated on paraphernalia that is used to take meth, and the next day an employee recognized the items, and reported it to the police, who arrested the individual. 

"It's important for everyone to get educated," said Willie. Before meth became illegal on the reservation, police officials did not know that the chalky, white substance in pipes was meth. 

"There is a lack of trained personnel" said Willie. As part of the program, testimonies and interviews with current meth users, previous meth users, and family members of meth users has been aired on KTNN and other radio stations. There have also been a series of one-hour segment shows where people talk about their negative experience with meth. 

In an interview, a woman states her shock when she realizes that a judge in court did not recognize the sign and symptoms of meth that her husband was showing during a trial hearing. This was before meth was against the law, but now people are becoming more aware. 

"People get empowered by the education," said Willie. Since people have become more educated on the issue, Willie said there have been more Navajo families who have reported meth use in their community. 

The DBHS plans to help implement legislative changes that would ultimately help educate youth. The program wants school age children in kindergarten to learn about meth and how to say no to drugs in general, especially since meth usage is occurring in schools. Willie said one of the pueblo tribes passed a law that makes meth education in grade schools necessary. 

"This is really, really dangerous stuff," said Willie. If the highly addictive drug is used on a regular basis, it can cause the body's natural pleasure hormones to be shut down completely, making it impossible for the body to create natural pleasure hormones at all. Because of this, many users become clinically depressed and can only feel pleasure by taking the drug. To make matters worse, many users are using meth with other drugs. 

"A lot of is combined," said Willie. Willie said that people who use meth, also use other substances like alcohol and marijuana. 

"We have people coming in saying they have a meth problem and say that 'I need help'," said Willie. Because there are no treatment centers on the reservation, people must go off Navajo to get treatment. However, because there are not culturally sensitive treatment centers in the city, people are not getting effective services. For example, Willie said that some people seeking treatment speak only Navajo and cannot communicate with an English speaking counselor. 

Because the law for meth was not passed until 2005, there is not adequate figures available to work with, making it more difficult for DBHS to identify and tackle specific problems. 

"There's not a lot of statistical information," said Willie. "We're getting to that point." 

Once more accurate statistics are available, DBHS can connect with other entities to find ways to attack meth head-on. Indian Health Services has some statistics on meth use, but Willie said they are not accurate and are more likely higher than noted. She said when people go into treatment, they are asked if they have used meth. Because many people are not familiar with the term "meth" and are more familiar with slang terms like "G" and "ice", they say that they have not taken the drug. 

Willie believes that the economy is part of the problem, and such things as rising gas prices and raises by utilities is not helping. 

"It's cheap to make and even cheaper to buy," said Willie. 

Harvard recognizes accomplishments by DBHS

Despite the challenges and the tragedies that have occurred as a result of meth usage, the DBHS has taken big steps to address meth on the Navajo Nation. 

The Harvard Project on American Indian Economic Development recognized the accomplishment made by DBHS to step up to meth. Under the Harvard project, DBHS is up for the "Honoring Nations" award. It is an national award program that identifies and celebrates and shares outstanding examples of tribal governance. Nominees are programs with initiatives that are especially effective in addressing critical concerns and challenges facing more than 560 Indian nations and their citizens. Honorees serve as sources of knowledge and inspiration throughout Indian Country and beyond. 

Just this week, DBHS received notification that it is a semi-finalist for the award, and if selected, will get $10,000 to continue its efforts to fight meth. Willie said they have no idea who nominated them, but that they feel honored just to be nominated in the first place. 

Navajo culture and traditional beliefs continue to be the foundation that DBHS uses to educate people on substance abuse. For meth education, the program emphasizes to the Navajo people that cooking is used in traditional ceremonies, like the puberty ceremony, Kinaldaa, and should not be used for meth. 

"Cooking is sacred," said Willie. "These things are opposite of our Navajo way of life." 

Willie said that because Navajo people traditionally lived in hogans, they had to resolve disagreements and issues immediately since people couldn't go to a room to be alone. If someone was sad or upset, the whole family knew. Willie said this is why the concept of living is harmony was so stressed, because that's how the Navajo people use to live. 

"We were once great problem solvers," she said.