THANKS VERY MUCH. >> THANK YOU.
>> A MENOMINEE NATION LAWSUIT
AGAINST SOCIAL MEDIA GIANTS LIKE META, SNAP, UBER AND TIKTOK
BLAMES THE COMPANIES FOR REWIRING THE BRAINS OF TEENS AND
YOUNG ADULTS, CAUSING SUICIDAL DISTRESS. THE SUIT ALLEGES THE
ALGORITHMS CODED IN TO THE PLATFORMS ENCOURAGING OBSESSIVE
SCROLLING AND RESULTING NEGATIVE SELF-IMAGE, ESPECIALLY AMONG
GIRLS. THE LAWSUIT CITES THE CDC, SAYING TRIBAL SUICIDE RATES
FAR EXCEED THE NATIONAL AVERAGE, ALLEGING A LINK TO SOCIAL MEDIA
USE. WE ARE JOINED NOW BY ONE OF THE ATTORNEYS FOR THE MENOMINEE
INDIAN TRIBE, TIMOTHY PURDON. >> THANKS FOR HAVING ME.
>> YOUR LAWSUIT DESCRIBE HOW THIS HAS DEVASTATED TRIBAL
COMMUNITIES. WHAT IS THE SITUATION AMONG THE MENOMINEE IN
WISCONSIN?
COUNTRY THE RESERVATION COMMUNITIES LIKE MENOMINEE, YOU
KNOW, OR A LONG TIME, DECADES REALLY, YOU KNOW, THE TRIBAL
YOUTH, THE TEENAGE POPULATIONS IN THOSE COMMUNITIES, REALLY
SOME OF THE MOST AT-RISK POPULATIONS IN THIS COUNTRY, YOU
LOOK AT ANY OF THE STATISTICS FOR MENTAL HEALTH, SUICIDE
RATES, THOSE SORT OF THINGS, A NATIVE AMERICAN FEMALE TEENAGER
HAS A FIVE-TIME RATE OF SUICIDE RISK TO A WHITE FEMALE TEENAGER.
THOSE SORTS OF STATISTICS ARE ALL TOO OFTEN IN INDIAN
COUNTRIESN. THE LAST TEN YEARS WE HAVE SEEN INJECTED INTO THAT
VULNERABLE POPULATION THE SOPHISTICATED BUSINESS PRACTICES
AND ALGORITHMS O OF THE SOCIAL MEDIA COMPANIES WHICH THE
GROWING RESEARCH AND DATA DIRECTLY LINKS TO DECREASE --
>> IN YOUR BELIEF DOES A YOUNG PERSON ENGAGING WITH SOCIAL
MEDIA APPS CONTRIBUTE TO THIS?
CLEAR. THE CDC STUDIES ARE CLEAR AND ESTABLISH A LINK. SO THAT IS
THE SCIENTIFIC BASIS BEHIND THIS LAWSUIT AND A NUMBER OF THER
LAWSUITS. LET'S BE CLEAR, MENOMINEE ENTITY IS NOT THE
FIRST TO COME FORWARD AND SEW THE SOCIAL MEDIA GIANTS FOR
NEGATIVE IMPACT FOR THE TEEN MENTAL HEALTH. AT LEAST 41 STATE
ATTORNEYS GENERAL FILED LAWSUITS SIMILAR TO OURS LAST OCTOBER
AGAINST THESE COMPANIES INCLUDING THE ATTORNEY GENERAL
FOR STATE OF WISCONSIN. THIS IS A NATIONWIDE EPIDEMIC, CRISIS.
SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORMS IMPACTING YOUNG PEOPLE. THE POINT OF OUR
LAWSUIT IS IN THE MIX OF ALL THAT THE MOST VULNERABLE
POPULATION OF TEENAGERS IN THIS COUNTRY ARE NATIVE TEENS LIVING
IN THEIR RESERVATION COMMUNITIES.
>> SO THAT IS WHY THIS IS WHAT YOU DESCRIBE AS A FIRST OF ITS
KIND LAWSUIT?
HISTORICALLY OVER THE LAST 150 YEARS TRIBAL NATIONS HAVE NOT
NECESSARILY COME FORWARD AND EXERCISED THEIR SOVEREIGNTY IN
THIS WAY. COMING FORWARD, FILING A LAWSUIT ON A PUBLIC HEALTH
CRISIS IMPACTING THEIR RESERVATION AS IT IS IMPACTING
THE REST OF THE COUNTRY. IN THE BIG TOBACCO CASES OF LATE 90s,
AMERICAN INDIAN TRIBES WERE NOT PLAINTIFFS, THEY DID NOT SUE.
WHEN THEY SETTLED TRIBAL COMMUNITIES DIDN'T SHARE IN THE
SETTLEMENT DOLLARS. OVER THE LAST FIVE OR SIX YEARS THAT HAS
CHANGED AND HAVE BEEN INVOLVED IN LITIGATION AGAINST OPIOID
MANUFACTURERS AND DISTRIBUTORS FOR THE OPIOID EPIDEMIC. AGAIN,
AN EPIDEMIC THAT HAS HIT TRIBES HARD. OVER 250 FEDERALLY
RECOGNIZED TRIBES FILED LAWSUIT AGAINST THE OPIOID
MANUFACTURERS. WHEN THOSE SETTLED OVER 1.5 BILLION WILL
FLOW DIRECTLY TO TRIBES FROM THOSE SETTLEMENTS. THIS IS THE
LATEST SITUATION WHERE TRIBES ARE EXERCISING THEIR
SOVEREIGNTY. SITTING SHOULDER-TO-SHOULDER WITH THE
STATE ATTORNEY GENERAL FROM WISCONSIN, FROM MINNESOTA,
BRINGING THE CASES SAYING WE ARE TRIBAL GOVERNMENTS, WE ARE SOV
R SOVEREIGN AND OUR PEOPLE ARE
IMPACTED, IT IS A ROBUST EFFORT BY TRIBES IN THE COUNTRY.
>> WHAT IS YOUR SUIT SEEK ING?ENTER
>> THE PUBLIC HEALTH CRISIS. THE SUIT ALLEGES THERE'S BEEN A
PUBLIC HEALTH CRISIS CREATED. WE ARE SEEKING COMPENSATION,
ABATEMENT. WE WANT TO SEE THAT THE DOLLARS FLOW TO THE TRIBES
SO THEY CAN DEVELOP PROGRAMS TO ADDRESS THE GROWING MENTAL
HEALTH AND SUICIDE CRISIS THAT IS LINKED TO THE BUSINESS
PRACTICES OF SOME OF THESE DEFENDANTS.
>> SO ARE THERE SPECIFIC IDEAS, TO YOUR KNOWLEDGE, ON THE PART
OF THE TRIBES OF HOW THEY WOULD SPECIFICALLY USE THIS MONEY?
THE -- WE ARE TAKING THE FIRST
STEP IN WHAT COULD BE A VERY LONG JOURNEY TOWARDS JUSTICE
HERE. TO TALK ABOUT WHAT THIS MIGHT LOOK LIKE AT THE END IS A
LITTLE PREMATURE. I CAN TELL YOU IN THE OPIOID CASES TRIBES THAT
HAVE RECEIVED SOME OF THAT 1.5 BILLION HAVE BUILT TREATMENT
FACILITIES, EXPANDED TREATMENT OPPORTUNITIES ON THE RESERVATION
AND IN THOSE SORTS OF MENTAL HEALTH TREATMENT, MENTAL HEALTH
CARE OPTIONS ARE ALL TOO SCARCE IN INDIAN COUNTRY. SO ANY MONEYS
BROUGHT IN TO HELP PEOPLE ON THE RESERVATION IS A BIG HELP.
>> ALL RIGHT. WE LEAVE IT THERE. >> ALL RIGHT. WE LEAVE IT THERE.