Native American boarding schools are ranked as one of the most difficult and painful chapters in the history of cultural relations between Native Americans and the US government. These institutions were set in the 19th and 20th centuries with the main purpose of eradicating the indigenous languages, culture, and even their existence from their lives.
In the disguise of taking their studies, learners suffered various inhumane treatments and exploitations. These schools have left their effects on Native communities up to this present day as the effects of cultural genocide experienced by the Native people re-emerge in contemporary society.
The U.S. Government’s Policy of Forced Assimilation
Compromise in the later half of the 1800s and up to the early 1900s saw the American government enact a policy to remove the Native American children and train their mannerisms to white civilization. One of the worst components of this policy was the introduction of Indian boarding schools.
These schools, which were run by Christian missionaries, aimed at eliminating native cultures, languages, and values and replacing them with Western education systems, Christianity, and ethical beliefs.
Richard Henry Pratt, the main author of this policy, founded the Carlisle Indian Industrial School. He memorably said, “A great general has said, ‘the only good Indian is a dead Indian,’ inferring that for the so-called ‘civilization’ of the Native Americans, their culture had to be erased.
According to Pratt, to transform Native children, the “Indian” part of them needed to be “terminated”, which can be directly translated as “kill the Indian, save the child”.
The Tough Life of Boarding Schools
In these institutions, native children were removed from their homes at very young ages and introduced to a brutal system of dehumanization. It was stated that the schools used to punish those children who spoke Native languages or failed to accomplish tasks with whippings.
They comprised children who had been robbed of individuality—converted to English names, forced to shave their hair, and had to wear campaign-type apparel.
It was believed that it was improper for Native Americans to speak any language other than English, wear traditional clothing, or practice traditional customs; children who demonstrated these signs were punished severely.
The intention was to sever them from their Indigenous heritage, erasing their identity and transforming them into who the U.S. government considered ideal citizens of the White society.
The Number of Dead People and Other Consequences
Despite being marketed as educational institutions, the results were catastrophic. The most affected children suffered from malnutrition, sickness, and personality injustices, and this resulted in high child mortality.
These school systems deprived Native children of their childhood, and the deaths of thousands of them are even erased by not having burial markers often. These institutions were not only instrumental in killing off as many children as physically possible but also systematically eradicating Native America’s culture.
The humiliations and losses the children and their families underwent in Bosnia were passed on to the next generations.
Policies of forced assimilation, which sought to eliminate Indigenous lifeways from the present-day United States, brought dramatically painful consequences to Native people and destabilized Indigenous cultures, which are still strongly felt in Native communities across the nation.
The Call for Justice and Recognition
More recently, there has been an increased focus on the impact of the Native American boarding schools as new indigenous graves are discovered at residential school sites in both the United States and Canada. This has led to significant requests for accountability and compensation, considering that people demand an official apology.
Junípero Serra, the Spanish Catholic friar who conducted missions for the founding of different missions in California, became a saint in 2015 in the Catholic Church. This decision fuels passion and protest among the Native Americans who consider Serra as an agent of cultural genocide.
Had it not been for colonization, as evidenced by the church, it would have been able to bring out matters concerning forced assimilation and abuse in Native schools.
This is not only a part of the history of these schools but also of their present and future, which society must recognize. Only by accepting that the survivors and their families feel pain can one start doing justice to the extent of the damages incurred and attempt healing.
Change and Reconciliation as the Path to Healing
That said, the impact of the boarding schools is detrimental, but the healing of the survivors and their families, along with the Indigenous people, is possible.
It is important to admit this historical violence, but it will not be sufficient to accept it; deserved apologies, compensation, and attempts to support and revive Indigenous peoples’ identities are needed as well.
Indigenous people have been requesting the restoration of their lands, the resurrection of Indigenous languages, and the safeguarding of Indigenous practices. Today, people are actively trying to restore the lost traditions intentionally removed from society within the past few decades.
Continuing to share information with those who wish to learn about Native American boarding institutions and the repercussions of their existence is vital in educating the next generation about Native Americans and their groundbreaking rights.
While this history is still painful in many ways, addressing it requires heeding the victims and their progress first-hand account from the Native American descendants. Thus, if you listen, recognize the act of abuse, and express people’s right to justice, people will start changing and becoming more tolerant and polite.