For many native cigarette Americans, tobacco is a sacred ceremonial herb. But it’s also an expensive and addictive drug that has ravaged their communities for generations, contributing to high rates of alcohol abuse, obesity, heart disease, and other health problems. A new study suggests that it could be time for tribes to put down their cigarettes.

At the end of a narrow driveway surrounded by a green fence in Kahnawake Mohawk territory, a handful of workers are producing what outsiders call contraband cigarettes and local leaders say is their inherent right to sovereignty. At one end of the factory, a worker feeds pungent, raw tobacco into a noisy machine that prepares it for final assembly. At another, a labyrinthine apparatus churns out thousands of cigarettes.

“Exploring Native Cigarettes: Brands, Availability, and Legal Considerations

In the past, tobacco smuggling was driven by major tobacco companies shipping millions of cigarettes into the United States for sale in Canada, where they are tax free. But since the 1990s, the industry has largely shifted to independent entrepreneurs who own and operate small factories. Often, these businesses employ hundreds of people on reserve, paying wages ranging from $600 to $700 a week, income-tax free. Workers have few basic labour protections, and are vulnerable to summary dismissal or injury or sickness in workplaces with minimal safety or health precautions.

But the cigarette industry has also helped create a new class of wealthy tribal members and, for some, is helping to erode traditional values on reservations. Despite high smoking rates, some tribal leaders are urging their members to abandon commercial cigarettes and return to ancient methods of growing and using sacred tobacco.

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