Alaska's Dirty Underground: A Corruption Level System Failure

SESSION INFO

Monday, August 29, 2022
9:15 AM - 10:15 AM
Session Type: Workshop

Social Engineering in Alaska has taken a turn and flipped an already flawed system to a level of corruption and access that targets the mentally ill and vulnerable. The corruption level has escalated to a gross neglect and complacency in system functions; and this has become norm. From data collection to services, Native Alaskans are not prioritized or valued. Instead, the underground of organized crime have found their way to manipulate the systems and shift the compassion of Alaskans to deteriorate. Alaska Native people are going to jail and taking plea deals to crimes they did not commit. The vulnerability level for Alaska Natives is high in an already violent city; the paths to succumb to coercion is high and is preyed upon. I am willing to purpose change at any level but awareness must come first. Corruption is here in our legal, justice and human services Departments. The services and federally funded grants used to help, are now tools of injustice and help the unjust stay out of prison while Alaska Natives stay in prisons without services. The data shows this. Alaska is 7th in the world for import/export, and its international airport keeps crime high. The devastating effects of a dirty underground are threatening the lives of Native people.

SESSION PRESENTERS

April Charmley
Peer Support Specialist, The Native Village of Eklutna


I am Denina Indian from the Native Village of Eklutna in Alaska, close to Anchorage, the state's largest city. I am a survivor of domestic violence. I am responsible for the safety of the people who visit Denina lands; the values and traditions in my culture guide me. My grandfather, Leo Stephan, signed the treaty between the state and the federal government and my grandmother, Alberta Stephan, is our historian. History repeats itself; let's unite for the best possible future.