[ad_1]
The US government will investigate the troublesome legacy of Native American boarding schools and work to “expose the truth about the loss of life and the lasting consequences of these institutions,” which have forced hundreds of thousands of children to leave their homes and communities for decades. .
The U.S. Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland has directed the department to prepare a report detailing the available historical records related to the federal boarding school program, with a focus on cemeteries or potential cemeteries.
Harland said in a statement: “The Ministry of the Interior will address the intergenerational impact of Indian boarding schools in order to reveal the self-evident trauma of the past, no matter how difficult it is.” Secretary’s Memo“I know this process will be long and difficult. I know this process will be painful. It will not eliminate the heartbreak and loss we feel. But only by acknowledging the past can we be proud of the future we are all proud of. Work hard.”
On Tuesday, Harland announced the review in a speech at the mid-year meeting of the National Congress of American Indians.
Beginning with the Indian Civilization Act of 1819, the United States formulated laws and policies to establish and support Indian boarding schools nationwide. For more than 150 years, indigenous children were taken from their communities and forced to enter boarding schools focused on assimilation.
Harland talked about the federal government’s attempts to eliminate tribal identity, language and culture, and how it has continued to manifest in the past through long-term trauma, cycles of violence and abuse, premature death, mental disorders, and drug abuse.
The recent discovery of the remains of children at the site of what was once Canada’s largest Aboriginal boarding school has increased interest in this heritage in Canada and the United States.
In Canada, as part of a plan to integrate them into society, more than 150,000 Aboriginal children are required to attend state-sponsored Christian schools. They were forced to convert to Christianity and were not allowed to speak their language. Many people were beaten and verbally abused, and as many as 6,000 were said to have died.
After reading an unmarked grave in Canada, Harland told the story of her own family A recent review article Published by The Washington Post.
She wrote: “Many Americans may panic to learn that the United States has a history of taking indigenous children from their families in order to wipe out our culture and our nation.” “If our country wants it. To recover from this tragic era, we must learn from this history.”
She continued: “I am the product of these terrible assimilation policies. My grandparents were stolen by their family when they were only 8 years old and forced to leave their parents, culture and community until they were 13 years old. . Many kids like them Never went home again. “
Harland cited statistics from the Native American Boarding School Rehabilitation Alliance, which reported that by 1926, more than 80% of Native school-age children were enrolled in boarding schools operated by the federal government or religious organizations. In addition to providing resources and raising awareness, the alliance has also been working to compile more studies on American boarding schools and death tolls, which many people consider to be very lacking.
Officials from the Ministry of the Interior said that in addition to trying to learn more about the loss of life in boarding schools, they will also work hard to protect school-related cemeteries and will negotiate with the tribe on how to best do this while respecting the family and community.
Agency staff reports should be submitted before April 1.
In a speech on Tuesday, Harland told the story of her grandmother who was loaded onto a train with other children in her village and then sent to a boarding school. She said the “dark history” of these institutions has been haunting many families, and the institution has a responsibility to restore this history.
She said: “We must reveal the truth about the loss of human lives and the lasting consequences of these schools.”
[ad_2]
Source link
