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Indian boarding schools notoriously worked to stamp out Native languages, religions, and cultures — along with traditional foodways.
“It is our deepest hope that the apology opens the doors to restoration of those things lost due to boarding school era policies – our culture, traditions, and most importantly our languages,” said Chief Executive Officer Lori Jump.
“It is essential that this apology is not merely symbolic but is accompanied by actionable commitments to repair the harm done,” said CSVANW Executive Director Tiffany Jiron.
“For generations, Native children, including many Navajo, endured an education system that aimed to erase our languages, cultures, and identities,” said President Buu Nygren.
“President Biden’s acknowledgment of the deep wounds caused by the Indian boarding school era is a crucial step towards healing and reconciliation,” said Chief Kirk Francis of the Penobscot Nation.
“This is an important day for our country and for all Native peoples,” said Shelly Lowe, the first Native person to chair the National Endowment for the Humanities.
Native peoples continue to endure the consequences of this era, evident in ongoing trauma, loss of cultural heritage, and persistent systemic inequalities, said the NIWRC.
Apologies offer hope for continued healing, acknowledgment of a tragic historical record, and movement toward righting a wrong, said the Native American Church of North America.
“The Indian Boarding School era left lasting, intergenerational scars on tribal families and communities,” said Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-Washington).
“The impact of boarding schools upon the health and well-being of Native American children and families cannot be overstated,” said IHS Director Roselyn Tso.
“President Biden’s apology is a moment of validation for our communities, recognizing the profound trauma endured by generations of Native children and families—including my own mother,” said National Indian Health Board Chairman William Smith.
“President Biden’s apology is a critical acknowledgment of past injustices and wrongdoings by the federal government, and it lays the groundwork for continued healing,” said Navajo Nation Council Speaker Crystalyne Curley.
“For generations, Native children were taken from their families and communities in an inhumane attempt to erase their culture that led to the abuse and even murder of young students,” said Sen. Mark Kelly (D-Arizona).
“Today’s apology by President Biden on behalf of the United States government is both welcomed and long overdue,” said Chairman Marshall Pierite of the Tunica-Biloxi Tribe.
“For more than a century, the federal government’s Indian Boarding School policies and practices stole hundreds of thousands of Native children from their homes in an effort to destroy Native languages, cultures, and identities,” said Sen. Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii).
President Joe Biden delivers remarks at the Gila River Indian Community in Arizona on October 25, 2024.
Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland speaks at the Gila River Indian Community in Arizona on October 25, 2024.
“Survivors live among our communities and the trauma they endured echoes through our families,” said Oneida Nation Representative Ray Halbritter.
“Oklahoma was home to 87 boarding schools in which thousands of our Cherokee children attended,” said Principal Chief Chuck Hoskin Jr.
“Let us never forget the scars inflicted on our Native brothers and sisters,” said Sen. Ben Ray Luján (D-New Mexico).
“Indigenous communities have been subjected to trauma at every scale and dimension imaginable,” said COLT Vice Chairman Tracy King.
“The Federal Indian Boarding School era was a shameful, dark chapter in American history,” said. Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Oregon).
President Joe Biden delivers remarks at the Gila River Indian Community in Arizona on October 25, 2024.
“This apology is an important step forward, but it must be accompanied by meaningful actions addressing these historical injustices’ ongoing impacts,” said AFN President Benjamin Mallott.
“Genocide, institutional racism, abuse in all forms, cultural disconnection, alienation and pressure to assimilate away from Native culture and identity have haunted our people for generations,” said the Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation.
Governor Stephen Roe Lewis of the Gila River Indian Community welcomes visitors to his tribal nation on October 25, 2024.
“The incredible resilience of Native peoples, even as the United States government tried to erase and eradicate their identities, is deeply inspiring,” said Sen. Tina Smith (D-Minnesota).
Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland speaks at the Gila River Indian Community in Arizona on October 25, 2024.
More than 200 people and four organizations are supporting the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes in denouncing a Republican candidate’s derogatory remarks about Native Americans.
President Joe Biden delivers remarks at the Gila River Indian Community in Arizona on October 25, 2024.
President Joe Biden is taking the historic step to formally apologize for the federal government’s role in the genocidal Indian boarding school era.
For the first time in history, a sitting U.S. president is set to apologize for the federal government’s role in abuse and mistreatment at Indian boarding schools.
President Joe Biden is highlighting his administration’s Indian Country achievements as he prepares to visit a tribe in Arizona.
The Affordable Care Act, which permanently authorized the Indian Health Care Improvement Act, is once again a subject of debate in the 2024 presidential race.
The Bureau of Indian Affairs is moving forward with regulations to implement the Safeguarding Tribal Objects of Patrimony Act, also known as the STOP Act.
Every year, thousands of Native people are going without the health care they’re entitled, or are risking costly medical bills for treatment that should be covered.
Indigenous communities across the Southwest face adversities that stem from historical marginalization.
With less than two weeks before the November 2024 election, join Native America Calling to discuss progress — and continuing hurdles — for Native voters.
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