Guest Opinion. The experiences of Native people with boarding schools touches nearly every Native American alive today.
The federal government policy had a goal of total assimilation of Native people. This assimilation was to be achieved by separating children from families, banning the use of Native languages, and forcing children and young people to adopt Western practices, including insisting they give up their own spiritual ways to become Christians. During this period across several generations, many children were physically abused, sexually assaulted, malnourished, and mistreated. The Interior Department urged the U.S. government this summer to formally apologize for the enduring trauma inflicted on Native Americans. The trauma of those experiences reverberates across Indian Country today.
Yet this dark period in American history is largely unknown to non-Natives. I hope President Biden’s apology not only raises awareness of the true Native history in our country but is a step towards national reconciliation and healing.
We join Tribes, Native organizations, and our Native relatives and allies in the call for reparative actions. Today we call for a significant investment by the federal government and philanthropy in restorative and healing approaches and institutions to repair the harm done by the boarding school era. The Native people who we support, from our youngest children to our college students, deserve that investment. The tribal college and university movement that emerged over 50 years ago to support place-based, Native-led, and tribally controlled education deserves that investment.
We also thank Interior Secretary Deb Haaland, a member of the Pueblo of Laguna tribe of New Mexico, whose grandparents and great-grandfather were taken from their homes and sent to boarding schools. Under her leadership, the boarding school investigation launched three years ago, and was the first time the U.S. government scrutinized the schools and listened to the stories of boarding school survivors and their descendants. Secretary Haaland’s leadership was vital to the formal apology American Indian and Alaska Native people received today."
Cheryl Crazy Bull, Wacinyanpi Win (They Depend on Her), the President and CEO of the American Indian College Fund, is a citizen of the Sicangu Lakota Nation. She has been in her position with the American Indian College Fund since 2012.
More Stories Like This
Looking Forward to New Tribal Economic Development ParityNDN Statement on Election Results: ‘Remember we are Warriors!’
A Heritage to be Proud Of
Getting the Native Vote Right; The National Media Should Not Rely on Self-Identified “Wannabes”
Progress In Serving At-Large Cherokees
Support Independent Indigenous Journalism That Holds Power to Account
With the election now decided, Native News Online is recommitting to our core mission: rigorous oversight of federal Indian policy and its impact on tribal communities.
The previous Trump administration’s record on Indian Country — from the reduction of sacred sites to aggressive energy development on tribal lands — demands heightened vigilance as we enter this new term. Our Indigenous-centered newsroom will provide unflinching coverage of policies affecting tribal sovereignty, sacred site protection, MMIR issues, water rights, Indian health, and economic sovereignty.
This critical watchdog journalism requires resources. Your support, in any amount, helps maintain our independent, Native-serving news coverage. Every contribution helps keep our news free for all of our relatives. Please donate today to ensure Native News Online can thrive and deliver impactful, independent journalism.