Monday, November 25, 2024
In the United States from 1819-1969, the federal government ran Indian Boarding Schools. These schools separated children from their parents, their native languages, their native cultures and modes of dress– even their names. They were meant to culturally erase native cultures and languages, and created environments where fear, intimidation, emotional, physical, and sexual violence went unchecked.
In Wisconsin, Indian boarding schools began in 1661 and were run by Jesuit missionaries whose goal was to convert children from tribal communities to Christianity. Whether run by Christian missionaries or the federal government, coercion and violence in Indian Boarding Schools happened here, too, in our communities and across the state. It is a dark part of our history that we must teach about and promote the understanding of. When we don’t talk about parts of history we don’t like or make us feel bad, we create another form of erasure on top of the initial erasure of native cultures and people.
This Native American Heritage Month, we urge you to learn more about the history of Indian Boarding schools in Wisconsin and the US. We must acknowledge harm and not sweep it under a rug. True reconciliation and healing requires creating a relationship with our Wisconsin tribal nations based on truth and accountability, as well as investment in future wellbeing for these communities.
No matter how dark history is, we can always find hope in our ability to make new, different choices that value human rights, tribal sovereignty, and community.
Thank you to the DPI’s American Indian Consultant, David O’Connor, for this collection of important articles.
- Biden apologizes for government's role in running Native American boarding schools via NPR
- Indian schools in Wisconsin via Wisconsin Historical Society
- Legacy of Trauma: The Impact of American Indian Boarding Schools Across Generations via PBS
- Reckoning with the Devastating Legacy of Federal Indian Boarding School Policies via the Mellon Foundation
- Native American Boarding Schools via Library of Congress Primary Source Set
- Federal Indian Boarding School Initiative via US Department of the Interior
- US Indian Boarding School History via The National Native American Boarding School Healing Coalition
- Struggling with Cultural Oppression: Boarding Schools via National Museum of the American Indian