High rates of child abuse, crime and other violence on reservations stem from the federal government's historical mistreatment of American Indians, Assistant Secretary Larry Echo Hawk said on Tuesday.

Echo Hawk said an incident like the forced march of Navajos and Apaches in the 1860s resonates long after it ended. "In this scenario of struggle, problems have been created from generation to generation," he said at a child protection conference convened by the Department of Justice, the Associated Press reported.

"It's not over," said Echo Hawk, a member of the Pawnee Nation of Oklahoma. "I think this still plagues our communities across the country."

The conference, hosted by Santa Ana Pueblo in New Mexico, brought together federal officials, tribal leaders, law enforcement agents, social workers and other experts to discuss ways to protect children in Indian Country. The event, which runs through Thursday, is considered the first of its kind

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