Failing bereaved children in tribal areas

Just-released data indicate that about 25 percent of children in Oglala Lakota County, South Dakota, have lost a parent or sibling to death. The childhood bereavement picture is very different in Union County, South Dakota, where about 2 percent of children have lost a parent or sibling to death. Ninety-three percent of individuals in Oglala Lakota County are American Indian (alone) and 94 percent of individuals in Union County are White. South Dakota is not an isolated example. In western states, childhood bereavement is far more likely in tribal areas. Nationally, about 4.5 percent of children are bereaved, but in...

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