For almost 150 years, native children were sent to boarding schools

President Joe Biden is expected to formally apologize Friday to American Indians, Alaska Natives and Native Hawaiians for abuses committed at boarding schools funded and operated by the federal government. This is why this step is crucial for Indian Country.

For more than a century, indigenous children as young as four were taken from their homes and sent to government- or religiously-run boarding schools designed to eradicate their languages, cultures and tribal identities. The goal: to assimilate tribes into mainstream society and eliminate government fiduciary responsibilities to tribes as established in treaties, executive orders, and legislation.

An investigation by the Department of the Interior with support from the National Native American Boarding School Healing Coalition identified 417 federal Indian boarding schools operating in 451 locations in 37 states or then territoriesincluding 22 schools in Alaska and seven schools in Hawaii, between 1819 and 1969.

The coalition has also published a report interactive map with boarding schools in both the US and Canada.

The report found that religious organizations operated nearly half of the 417 federal schools, while another 59 schools run by religious groups received federal dollars.

About 1,025 schools were not run by the federal government, but by religious organizations.

How many children were sent to boarding schools?

In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, more than 18,000 children were sent to schools some 2,000 miles away from their home countries. These removals were accomplished in many ways, including sending soldiers into communities to forcibly take children.

The boarding school coalition said this number grew to more than 60,000 in the 1920s.

Nearly 900 known deaths occurred in the 417 federal facilities, along with countless cases of trauma, abuse, neglect, poor nutrition and despair.

Biden apologizes: Biden to visit tribal lands in Arizona and apologize for 150 years of boarding school abuse

At the height of the boarding school era, this was the case in Arizona 59 schools. Currently 34 are still open half are run by the Bureau of Indian Education and the rest by tribes or religious institutions. There are still boarding schools for students from remote communities, but on weekends and holidays the children go home.

In the past, parents who refused to send their children were given prison sentences 19 Hopi men imprisoned in Alcatraz for the crime of not letting go of their children.

The report also estimated that between 1871 and 1969, more than $23.3 billion in inflation-adjusted dollars in fiscal year 2023 was used to run the schools and similar institutions. associated policy.

What steps has the government taken to address the problems?

John Collierwho was appointed head of the Bureau of Indian Affairs by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1933, instituted several reforms, incorporating native languages and cultures into the curriculum, and mandating the closure of several boarding schools and replacing them with day schools. The Johnson-O’Malley Act of 1934 provided states with federal funding to support native education and other programs.

But the damage had already been done. Tribal communities have struggled with the consequences of thousands of children coming home without language, cultural ties or knowing how to be parents because they had no parental role model. Children exposed to chronic stress became dysfunctional adults whose attempts at parenting created a new generation with similar problems. Entire generations paid the price for a federal policy seen as a failure, and former students, their families and tribes continue to struggle with the trauma.

The Bureau of Indian Education funds 183 primary and secondary schools and residential facilities across the country. The agency has 55, while tribes operate 128 schools. This includes three residential high schools in California, Washington and Oklahoma.

The BIE also operates two colleges: Haskell Indian Nations University and the Southwestern Indian Polytechnic Institute.

The Federal Indian Boarding School Initiative has identified several recommendations made by survivors and their families to initiate and facilitate the healing process. This includes apologies from the government for the abuses in the system; support for language and cultural revitalization; family vitalization and reunification; reforms in tribal community education; and steps to reduce violence in tribal communities.

Debra Krol reports on indigenous communities at the confluence of climate, culture and trade in Arizona and the Intermountain West. Reach Krol up [email protected]. Follow her on X, formerly Twitter @debkrol.

Coverage of indigenous issues at the intersection of climate, culture and trade is supported by the Catena Foundation.