Interior Department to Investigate Abuse of Indigenous Children at American Boarding Schools

Overview

The Department of the Interior is launching an investigation into U.S. boarding school sites where Native children were forced to attend in the 19th and 20th centuries.
The investigation was prompted by the discovery of 215 Indigenous children's remains in unmarked graves at a Canadian boarding school site.
Similar findings in Canada have brought attention to the legacy of forced assimilation of Native people.

Announced by Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland in June.
Aims to identify boarding school sites in the U.S. with student burials.
Will work with Tribal Nations to protect burial sites and identify children's identities and Tribal affiliations.
A final report is expected by April 1, 2022.
The initiative seeks to expose the truth about the treatment of Native children at federal boarding schools.

U.S. engaged in a cultural assimilation campaign beginning with the Indian Civilization Act of 1819.
Over 365 boarding schools were established, affecting tens of thousands of Indigenous children.
By 1926, 83% of Native American school-age children were attending these schools.
Schools were based on the philosophy of "kill the Indian, and save the man."
Many children faced violence, were forbidden from speaking their languages, and were forced to abandon their identities.

A lasting legacy of trauma, including intergenerational trauma and cycles of violence.
Compulsory attendance for Indigenous children continued until 1978.
Even after, Native children were removed from their families by state and private welfare agencies.
Native children are more likely to be placed in foster care, often in non-Native homes, leading to identity loss.

Advocates stress the urgency of addressing this shared history.
Federal programs for Native Americans are underfunded.
Learning the history of Indian boarding schools is crucial for healing and justice.
Acknowledging the painful truths is seen as a first step to justice and healing.