Traditional Tobacco

The use of sacred traditional tobacco by Native populations has changed over time. Reclaiming traditional tobacco practices can help combat commercial tobacco use.

Tribal Tobacco Advocacy Toolkit

COMMERCIAL TOBACCO USE

There are many historical and social factors that lead to increased rates of commercial tobacco use in Native populations. Some of the most prominent are:

Colonization – tobacco was exported by settlers and commercialized
Federal assimilation policies – to comply with the law, commercial tobacco was used for traditional purposes until the American Indian Religious Freedom Act was passed in 1978
Marketing – Big Tobacco’s exploitation of tribal sovereignty¹ and misappropriation of Native people² led to commercial tobacco encroaching on traditional practices
Social norms – exposure to commercial tobacco in everyday life desensitizes Native people to it’s harms; youth are especially vulnerable to this

Addressing accessibility of traditional tobacco and empowering Native people to reclaim traditional tobacco practices is an act of decolonization that has potential to reduce use of commercial tobacco.

Tribal Tobacco Advocacy Toolkit

COMMERCIAL TOBACCO USE

There are many historical and social factors that lead to increased rates of commercial tobacco use in Native populations. Some of the most prominent are:

Colonization – tobacco was exported by settlers and commercialized
Federal assimilation policies – to comply with the law, commercial tobacco was used for traditional purposes until the American Indian Religious Freedom Act was passed in 1978
Marketing – Big Tobacco’s exploitation of tribal sovereignty¹ and misappropriation of Native people² led to commercial tobacco encroaching on traditional practices
Social norms – exposure to commercial tobacco in everyday life desensitizes Native people to it’s harms; youth are especially vulnerable to this

Planning

Talk with local cultural leaders about the barriers to traditional tobacco use they would like to address. This may included reduced access to sacred plants or community knowledge of cultural teachings.
Opagi (offer traditional tobacco in a respectful way for a spiritual purpose)² to a cultural leader to ask for support to address the barriers. Follow their lead. Learn the tradition of Čaŋšášá in this video.
Support cultural leaders to plan an event to reclaim traditional tobacco. This may include planting traditional tobacco in an accessible location, or hosting a hands-on educational activity to educate community members interested in learning traditional tobacco practices.

Resources

A leader in revitalizing Lakota traditional tobacco practices is Mni Wichoni Health Circle, who developed a Chansasa Revitalization Project Resource Guide. The guide describes how community land stewards were supported in “reconnecting to ceremony, prayer, relationship to the land, and storytelling practices on the land, while learning about chansasa and the environment it thrives within.”
The SacRED Willow book is another valuable educational resource for Lakota communities
The Keep It Sacred website houses many resources on traditional tobacco relevant to other Tribes
The South Dakota Tobacco Control Program is a great resource to educate on Sacred Čaŋšášá and commercial tobacco
Coming soon! A video documenting a Čaŋšášá harvesting event on the Oglala Sioux Tribe

Examples of Using Resources

Traditional Tobacco Garden

Čaŋli Coalition leaders identified a location near town to grow Čaŋšášá (Red Willow; Lakota traditional tobacco) to address accessibility issues. The “Čaŋšášá Garden” is cared for by Čaŋli Coalition members and will be opened up to the public to harvest when it is mature enough.

Examples of Using Resources

Čaŋšášá Retreat

Lakota cultural leaders shared stories and traditional tobacco teachings with Čaŋli Coalition members eager to learn and share Lakota protocols and practices. During the harvesting season in late winter, before the Thunder Beings return, the group gathered on the land for hands-on learning to harvest Čaŋšášá. Then the group moved indoors to scrape the branches and prepare the Čaŋšášá to dry. The Čaŋšášá is then given away to community members to use for offerings, prayers, gifts, and in the sacred pipe (čaŋúpa).

This retreat has resulted in Čaŋli Coalition members and partners with expanded knowledge to preserve and pass on traditional tobacco teachings. View Photos and highlights of the stories shared at the retreat.

Students were also invited to learn to shave Čaŋšášá branches in the classroom. The students used what they shaved and dried to honor their graduating peers.

References

Lempert & Glantz. (2018). Tobacco Industry Promotional Strategies Targeting American Indians/Alaska Natives and Exploiting Tribal Sovereignty. Article accessible here.
D’Silva et al. (2018). Tobacco industry misappropriation of American Indian culture and traditional tobacco. BMJ. Article accessible here.

Quit Today

TRIBAL TOBACCO ADVOCACY TOOLKIT

Youth & Young Adults

More Good years

Control Tobacco

Traditional Tobacco

COMMERCIAL TOBACCO USE

COMMERCIAL TOBACCO USE

Planning

Resources

Traditional Tobacco Garden

Čaŋšášá Retreat

References