{"id":19538,"date":"2022-01-05T13:02:47","date_gmt":"2022-01-05T18:02:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.indianz.com\/News\/?p=19538"},"modified":"2022-01-05T13:14:00","modified_gmt":"2022-01-05T18:14:00","slug":"it-is-a-sacred-site-city-seeks-input-from-survivors-of-indian-boarding-school","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/2022\/01\/05\/it-is-a-sacred-site-city-seeks-input-from-survivors-of-indian-boarding-school\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018A sacred site\u2019: City seeks input from survivors of Indian boarding school"},"content":{"rendered":"\"Albuquerque<\/a>
Early class of younger girls in school uniform at the Albuquerque Indian School, circa 1900. Photo: National Archives<\/a><\/figcaption>\r\n
\u2018A sacred site\u2019: City seeks input from survivors of Indian boarding school<\/div>\r\n
Wednesday, January 5, 2022<\/div>\r\n
By Acee Agoyo<\/div>\r\n
Indianz.Com<\/div>\r\n

<\/p>\r\nLeaders in the largest city in New Mexico are convening a series of \u201ccommunity conversations\u201d to address the harmful legacy of the Indian boarding school era.\r\n

<\/P>\r\nThe sessions, which begin next Tuesday, will be used to collect histories about the former Albuquerque Indian School. Though the facility closed decades ago, the pain suffered there surfaced again last summer, when a plaque commemorating the lives of young students disappeared<\/a> from a city-run park.\r\n

<\/p>\r\nMembers of the Indian community in Albuquerque quickly came together to honor the memories of the fallen students, who primarily hailed from Apache, Navajo and Zuni communities, according to local records. The city has since closed off portions of a park where young people are thought to have been buried.\r\n

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<\/P>\r\nLast month, city also utilized ground-penetrating radar at the the 4-H Park to further examine the burial ground. The upcoming conversations will help guide what comes next for what is being called a \u201csacred site.\u201d\r\n

<\/p>\r\n\u201cAs we move through the process of discovering stories about the Indian School and what took place there, we must take the time to ask our ancestors for strength and healing for those who didn\u2019t return home,\u201d said Terry Sloan, Intergovernmental Tribal Liaison for the city of Albuquerque. \r\n

<\/p>\r\n\u201cThe most sensitive areas of the park have been demarcated and closed to public access and we ask the community to be respectful of that space as it is a sacred site,\u201d said Sloan, who is Navajo and Hopi.\r\n

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\u201cWe even put out some stuffed bears for the kids, it\u2019s messed up this happened.\u201d said Rose Daniels, who lives in the neighborhood around the 4-H Park where at least 100 students and staff from the early Albuquerque Indian School era are buried.https:\/\/t.co\/368rhWGrJO<\/a><\/p>— IllumiNative (@IllumiNative) December 20, 2021<\/a><\/blockquote>