On Friday, President Joe Biden formally apologized for the U.S. government's role in operating at least 523 Indian boarding schools, during a visit to the Gila Crossing community school near Phoenix, Arizona. This visit marked his first trip to Indian country as president.
“After 150 years, the United States government eventually stopped the program,” Biden stated. “But the federal government has never, never formally apologized for what happened – until today. I formally apologize, as president of the United States of America, for what we did. I formally apologize. That’s long overdue.”
Biden described the federal Indian boarding school policy as a significant source of shame in American history. He noted that the painful legacy of these institutions has often gone unnoticed by the public. These schools were designed to "kill the Indian in him, and save the man," a phrase attributed to army officer Richard Henry Pratt, founder of the Carlisle Indian boarding school, the first federally operated Indian boarding school. Between 1819 and 1969, the U.S. government managed or funded such schools across nearly 40 states, where Indigenous children were forcibly removed from their families, stripped of their cultural identities, and often punished violently for speaking their languages.
A recent report from the U.S. Department of the Interior revealed that nearly 1,000 Indigenous children died while attending these schools, and instances of sexual violence were widespread. Dr. Denise K. Lajimodiere, a member of the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa and co-founder of the National Native American Boarding School Healing Coalition, described the boarding school era as a time of ethnocide, cultural genocide, and severe human rights abuses.
Stephen Roe Lewis, the governor of the Gila River Indian Community, expressed that many boarding school survivors have long awaited this moment. “For just a moment on Friday, this will rise to the top, and the most powerful person in the world, our president, is shining a light on this dark history that’s been hidden,” he said.
No previous president has offered an apology for the mistreatment endured by tens of thousands of Indigenous children in these schools. Interior Secretary Deb Haaland, the first Indigenous person to hold the position and whose family members were forced to attend boarding schools, accompanied Biden during the historic apology. As Secretary of the Interior, Haaland initiated the first U.S. government investigation into the boarding schools.
“While affluent families may send their children to boarding schools for an exclusive education, for Indigenous peoples, they served as places of trauma and terror for over a century,” Haaland stated. She also acknowledged that the federal government failed in its efforts to assimilate Indigenous peoples, saying, “It failed to annihilate our languages, our traditions, our life ways. It failed to destroy us because we persevered.”
Two years ago, Dr. Ramona Klein, a member of the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa, testified before Congress about her experiences of abuse at the Fort Totten Indian boarding school. She urged Congress to provide resources to help heal the deep wounds inflicted on generations of Indigenous people by these policies. “I want resources to teach all Americans how boarding schools impacted and destroyed lives,” she said, highlighting ongoing issues like domestic violence, substance abuse, and poverty.
The final report on boarding schools included eight recommendations from the Bureau of Indian Affairs, with the first calling for an official apology.
Chuck Hoskin Jr., the principal chief of the Cherokee Nation, called the apology a “profound moment for Native people across this country.” While he praised the Biden administration for this acknowledgment, he stressed that true healing requires actionable steps, resources, and commitment. “The significance of this public apology by the president is an important step, which must be followed by continued action,” he said.
Cyrus Ben, tribal chief of the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians, referred to the apology as a “vital first step” toward addressing the long-term impacts of the boarding schools. He emphasized the ongoing challenges Native students face regarding their identity and cultural practices. “This apology marks a vital first step toward a broader dialogue about Native Americans and a recognition that we are still here, thriving despite the historical injustices,” he stated. Ben expressed hope that these conversations would lead to meaningful change and a deeper appreciation of Native peoples and their contributions to society.
No comments:
Post a Comment