The San Francisco Chronicle, June 5, 1999:

It is considered the child of Mother Earth and Father Sky. It is used in many ceremonies and is often smoked as part of a prayer. Within many tribes, a pipe is often the first courtesy offered to a guest of a stranger. It is also used for medicinal purposes.

But American Indians also battle with high rates of tobacco addiction.

They blame non-Indians for introducing them to non-ceremonial uses of tobacco products and said tobacco manufacturers have directed ads at Indians, particularly young people, during marketing campaigns.

Today, 39 percent of American Indians smoke, compared with 26 percent of blacks, 25 percent of whites, 18 percent of Hispanics and 15 percent of Asians, according to the suit.

"[Tobacco] was never used in everyday experience—it was a sacrament, an offering," said Fidel Moreno, president of the Native American Council for Tobacco Litigation. "But now we're fighting to reverse a cycle of disease."

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