Local Indians start chamber of commerce

Indians in Southern Nevada, in conjunction with the Small Business Administration, have formed a business association allowing members to pool resources in support of the minority group's interests.

The American Indian Chamber of Commerce of Nevada, which hopes to one day operate several chapters throughout the state, is operating out of a temporary headquarters in Boulder City. Four organizations -- Arrowhead Technologies Inc., the SBA's Las Vegas District Office, STP Development and BankWest -- helped found the fledgling group.

Karla Simecka, interim treasurer, said the group first met six months ago, and now includes six corporate and one individual member with further members pending.

The interim vice president is her father Karl Simecka. Larry Morales is the acting president and Joanna Bryant is secretary.

The American Indian Chamber of Commerce hopes to use its resources to pursue jobs, education and business expansion for Indians by cooperating with other groups such as the Las Vegas Indian center.

Morales also sees the chamber as a means of bringing individuals in the community closer to their heritage.

Membership is open to businesses, individuals and students.

The local SBA office has had difficulty delivering loans to Indians. While the agency's goal was to back five loans this year, only two had been obtained by the middle of June.

Roger Hopkins, spokesman for the Las Vegas district office of the SBA, attributed the problem to the lack of a central organization and the structure of the Indian culture.

Hopkins said Indians have dealt with a history of abuse that has created a sense of protectionism and left them skeptical about government help. In addition, many of the things involved in starting a business traditionally have been foreign to them, he said.

The 1992 census is the best source of data concerning Indian business ownership, but even it provides little information. Indians are combined with the larger Asian community in this census category.

A recent report by Dean Judson, state demographer, estimates that Indians, who are grouped with Eskimo and Aleut populations in his study, make up 1 percent of the Las Vegas population.

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