But people running around shouting willy-nilly isn't going to help our situation. The reservation is a world apart from the rest of the Hamptons. Cancer rates among the Shinnecock are among the highest on Long Island. The reservation, in addition, has yet to be hooked up to the Suffolk County water supply. The Indians drink from an aquifer that is contaminated with the pesticide Temik at levels seven times the amount considered safe for human consumption, according to the County Health Department.
Somebody has to pay for it.
And it's going to have to be the Shinnecock. The Indians also cannot get home-improvement loans because the land is held in common and they have no mortgages. What is more, no Indian holds any meaningful elected or appointed town position. That leaves people like Ms. Genia. Her little house is as shaggy as a wet dog.