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SURGEON GENERAL BLASTS CRAZY HORSE MALT LIQUOR
Rapid City, SD (AP) - U.S. Surgeon General ANtonia Novello said the new
Crazy Horse malt liquor, manufactured by G. Heilman Inc. for Ferolito
Vultaggio and SOns of Brooklyn, NY, is an affront to Indians.
Novello stopped in Rapid City on her way from California to
Washington, D.C., and called on the federal Bureau of ALcohol, Tobacco and
Firearms to rescind its approval of the label. She said it is being
marketed in a misleading manner to Indians in violation of the Bureau's
standards. "This product is insensitive to the plight of American Indians
and the progress they have made with alcohol abuse."
Gov. George Michelson, who was on hand for the press conference,
said Crazy Horse malt liquor won't be sold in South Dakota because its
40-ounce size is too big and doesn't meet state packaging standards. "We
work very hard to promote a positive image for our state. It is disheart-
ening that they have chosen to associate malt liquor with the proud Native
American culture," he said. "The Crazy Horse name does not belong on this
product."
Indian publisher Tim Giago of Rapid City said using the name of
Crazy Horse, a Sioux warrior who died in 1877, amounts to bigotry. "It
would be the same as if you took a malt liquor and called it Martin Luther
King Malt Liquor. What would the black community think?" he asked.
U.S. Rep. Tim Johnson said he wrote a letter asking the company
to stop using the Crazy Horse name. "It is repugnant to see the name of
Crazy Horse identified with a product which has been the cause of untold
suffering and pain for thousands of Native American families and households,"
he said. The mass marketing of alcoholic beverages has come under fire
because of misleading appeals to young people and minorities, so using
Crazy Horse to promote the sale of malt liquor "simply adds insult to
injury."
Sen. Larry Pressler, R-SD, also wrote to the beer company. "The
marketing of any alcoholic beverage bearing the name of Crazy Horse is an
insult to the Indain people," he said. He has asked the Bureau of Alcohol,
Tobacco and Firearms to see if there's any way the agency can stop the
marketing of the product.
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Lisa A. Mitten 207 Hillman Library
Social Sciences Bibliographer University of Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh, PA 15260
Bitnet: lmitten@pittvms 412-648-7723
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