WhiteClay reenvisioned

 

 

One of the town’s former liquor stores, the Arrowhead Inn, now serves as the home of Whiteclay Makerspace, a 3,650 square-foot communal and retail space where artists work at stations in the back, while their art is sold in the front. All the supplies and equipment, from quilting machines to Dremel tools, are provided by the nonprofit, and artists are charged $1 a month to rent workspaces. Nebraska resident, attorney, educator and businessman John Ruybalid (Tewa) started the nonprofit with the guidance and input of Pine Ridge artists, and with grants from the Rapid City Rushmore Rotary and U.S. Department of Agriculture.

WONDERFUL NEWS: Remolding Whiteclay: A Once Bleak Bordertown Becomes an Oasis for Oglala Sioux Artists | Arts & Entertainment

NEW STORE: https://whiteclayredo.com/

I have been to Whiteclay Nebraska many times, too many times to recall. 

I wrote a story in 2007:  Alcohol abuse is not uncommon, even though the rez is dry, meaning no alcohol is sold in Pine Ridge. Abuse is still rampant. A short walk, a mile and a half to Nebraska, four liquor stores sell these Pine Ridge residents a million cans of beer a year. On August 4, tribal police checked cars for alcohol leaving White Clay, Nebraska, headed back to Pine Ridge.  Checking my rental car, the officer found three freshly decorated cakes I had just picked up for the memorial, along with groceries from Gordon, Nebraska. 

Read about my trip here:

https://www.indiancountrynews.com/index.php/news/indian-and-first-nations/6872-waiting-for-kidney-transplant-lakota-quilter-holds-family-sacred

 


 

Comments

It is so time for people to see what can come of a little creativity and dedication to better lives... This is wonderful!
LT said…
It is so good KC - I am over the moon happy!
Willow Croft said…
Lovely piece of ledger art...
LT said…
Willow, I want to hop in my car and go there NOW! :-)

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