{"id":37828,"date":"2024-06-20T20:00:40","date_gmt":"2024-06-21T00:00:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/?p=37828"},"modified":"2024-10-02T18:04:50","modified_gmt":"2024-10-02T22:04:50","slug":"indian-boarding-school-bill-sees-renewed-momentum-on-capitol-hill","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/2024\/06\/20\/indian-boarding-school-bill-sees-renewed-momentum-on-capitol-hill\/","title":{"rendered":"Indian boarding school bill sees renewed momentum on Capitol Hill"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Indianz.Com Video: Roll Call – H.R.7227, the Truth and Healing Commission on Indian Boarding School Policies Act – June 13, 2024<\/a>\r\n<\/figcaption>\r\n
Indian boarding school bill sees renewed momentum on Capitol Hill<\/div>\r\n
Thursday, June 20, 2024<\/div>\r\n
By Acee Agoyo<\/div>\r\n
Indianz.Com<\/div>\r\n

<\/p>\r\nApplause broke out on Capitol Hill with the advancement of a bipartisan bill that will finally help address the harmful legacy of the Indian boarding school era<\/a>.\r\n

<\/p>\r\nBy a vote of 34 to 4, the House Committee on Education and the Workforce<\/a> approved H.R.7227<\/a>, the Truth and Healing Commission on Indian Boarding School Policies Act, at a markup on June 13. The overwhelming show of support drew an audible response from lawmakers<\/a> — as well as from tribal citizens who gathered in the nation’s capital for the session.\r\n

<\/P>\r\nAmong those in attendance were representatives of the National Native American Boarding School Healing Coalition<\/a> (NABS). The non-profit has been lobbying the U.S. Congress<\/a> to account for the educational institutions where more than than 60,000 American Indian and Alaska Native children were taken from their homes for more than a century, all in an effort to break their connection to their tribal communities.\r\n

<\/p>\r\n“The legacy of Indian boarding schools unveils deep-ceded injustices that have profoundly affected and continue to resonate within tribal nations and communities,” \r\nsaid NABS CEO Deborah Parker, a citizen of the Tulalip Tribes who sat in the front row of the committee room as the roll call was taking place<\/a>.\r\n

<\/p>\r\n “Supporting H.R.7227 is crucial in acknowledging and addressing these longstanding historical wrongs, paving the way for truth, justice, and healing for survivors and their descendants,\u201d Parker said in a news release<\/a> after the vote. \u201cWe deserve to know the truth and Congress must act decisively to address the enduring trauma and embrace this moment for meaningful progress.\u201d\r\n

<\/p>\r\n“I applaud the House Committee on Education and Workforce for their bipartisan support on H.R.7227,” \r\nadded NABS Director of Policy and Advocacy Ponka-We Victors-Cozad, who also attended the markup last week. \r\n

<\/p>\r\n“This joint effort underscores the dedication to acknowledging and addressing historical injustices faced by Native people, a pivotal step towards fostering healing among our relatives,\u201d said Victors-Cozad, who is from the Tohono O\u2019odham Nation and the Ponca Tribe.\r\n

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Yesterday marked a historic day for Indian Country as HR 7227: The Bill to Establish a Truth and Healing Commission on…<\/p>Posted by National Native American Boarding School Healing Coalition<\/a> on Friday, June 14, 2024<\/a><\/blockquote><\/div>\r\n

<\/P>\r\nLawmakers, Republican and Democratic alike, expressed strong support for H.R.7227 during the markup. The bill would establish a national commission to formally investigate, document, and report on the impacts of Indian boarding school era, which involved not just the U.S. government but religious institutions and private parties.\r\n

<\/p>\r\nOver six years, the federal panel would collect testimony from Indian boarding school survivors, gather relevant records and look into student deaths, among other tasks. Lawmakers said the work represents an initial step in accounting for the tragedies of what has been called one of the darkest chapters in U.S. policy and history<\/a>.\r\n

<\/P>\r\n“From 1819 to 1969, tens of thousands of Indian children were taken away from their families and sent to Indian boarding schools across the United States, the majority of which were run or funded by the U. S. government,” observed Rep. Kevin Kiley<\/a> (R-California), a co-sponsor of the bill. “Students experienced abuse, malnutrition, and disease. They were forced to change their names, cut their hair and were beaten for speaking their Native language.”\r\n

<\/P>\r\nRep. Teresa Leger Fernandez<\/a> (D-New Mexico) pointed out that an investigation by the Department of the Interior<\/a> documented at least 53 burial grounds at Indian boarding school sites across the nation. She said more work is needed to “uncover the truth” about a system that included more than 400 institutions<\/a>, from Alaska to Florida.\r\n

<\/p>\r\n“It is undeniable that these events have led to intergenerational trauma within our Native communities,” Leger Fernandez, a co-sponsor of H.R.7227, said at the markup. “We are still uncovering the harm inflicted by these boarding schools. But we must continue the work to uncover the truths of this tragic and shameful chapter in our country’s history.”\r\n

<\/p>\r\n“We cannot undo the forced removal of Native children from their families or the horrific abuse they suffered under the federal government’s assimilation agenda,” added Rep. Suzanne Bonamici<\/a> (D-Oregon), whose state is home to Chemawa Indian School<\/a>, one of the few boarding schools still operated by the U.S. government.\r\n

<\/p>\r\n“Our job now is to provide the resources and support necessary to bring the victims stories to light, to educate the public and to facilitate healing for their descendants and for our nation,” said Bonamici, another co-sponsor of the bill.\r\n

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