Shinnecock Are All-In

When the Shinnecock Nation first floated the idea of operating a gaming facility two decades ago, the surrounding community exploded in dissent. Hateful rhetoric surrounded claims that such a facility would lead to a “nuclear explosion” of development, welcome “the devil” to town, and result in prostitution and destitution on the South Fork. The intensity seems a little silly in retrospect, but it was in no way considered excessive at the time.

In fact, it seems that every time the nation has announced economic development plans in the past — not just the casino but the billboard monuments on County Road 39, a medical cannabis dispensary on its territory, and a gas station on the highway — lawmakers at all levels initially joined residents to erupt in a familiar cacophony: The Shinnecock Nation will destroy the rural character of the East End and bring the “wrong element” to the Hamptons. The counterpoint — the tribe should instead work with local officials to develop economic plans — was an empty offer, a dodge.

When the nation’s leaders last week announced plans to build a Class 2 gaming facility on its territory at Shinnecock Neck, near the line of familiar smoke shops, the chorus felt a little different: more restrained, and even a bit welcoming. Lawmakers discouraged the plan, but they did so gently, acknowledging that the nation had every right to build a casino there under federal law. There were no immediate calls to arms, no declarations of pending apocalypse. The community, meanwhile, has been largely quiet on the subject.

Perhaps the response is rooted in a better understanding of the needs of the nation’s members, the right to economic development, and perhaps even a sort of solidarity, seeing the tribe not as some group outside of the community but as friends and neighbors instead.

Shinnecock leaders have done a tremendous job in recent years of sharing their message, their hopes and dreams of becoming financially self-sufficient, of standing on their own. The documentary “Conscience Point” effectively summed up the frustration the nation felt in its dealings with local and state government, watching the world around them prosper while stamping out tribal ambitions even for protections of burial sites.

It becomes easier to accept plans for a dispensary, a gas station and even a casino when the end result is the betterment of our neighbors — many of whom have, due to generations of neglect, been subjected to lives lived in poverty.

Of course, there will be some hurdles once the casino is built — especially added volume to an already out-of-control traffic buildup on the East End, something that can hardly be blamed on the nation. Shinnecock leaders have vowed to help local lawmakers address those hurdles, and we should take them at their word — rather than using the hurdles as one more excuse to blindly oppose the Shinnecock Nation’s right to self-sufficiency.

The tribe has gone all in now, and it’s time for state and local government to acknowledge a losing hand. Fold, and start a true, respectful conversation about the future, together.