Ten days ago, I participated in a Listening and Healing Pilgrimage event sponsored by the Episcopal Diocese of Arizona. The day was part of a series of events across the state of Arizona in which people were invited to listen to the stories of Native Americans who have been impacted by attendance at boarding schools across the US.
It was an intense and emotional day. I learned information I did not know, including the militaristic ambience at the schools (the first—which served as a model—was spearheaded by a Civil War veteran in 1879) and the fact that over 80% of Native children were attending boarding schools by 1926. We heard heartrending personal stories of the impact of the schools and consequent generational trauma on the lives of Native peoples today here in Arizona.
Even though I’ve been delving more deeply into these issues for several years now (and have written on this topic here and here), I realize how much I still have to learn. For example, I’d heard nothing in my prior listening about the US government’s urban relocation program. Have you? Started in the 1950s, it was another attempt to assimilate Native Americans into mainstream white culture by enticing them to move from reservations to big cities with promises of assistance with housing and employment.
Since this was happening at the same time that much governmental support of Native tribes was being terminated, many Natives made the move. In their new urban settings, they faced disorientation and homesickness as well as low-end jobs and discrimination. Many families traveled frequently between the cities and their families on the reservation, and their children were frequently shunned because they didn’t fit in and didn’t know the language “back home.”
One powerful aspect of such life-altering experiences is that family members learned not to speak about such traumas. Children at boarding schools had no counselors or compassionate adults to talk with. Older children who became dorm aides perpetuated the cycle of violence and repression they had experienced. When children “aged out” of the schools, they were simply let go without any support or infrastructure to guide them into meaningful adult lives.
There is so much to grieve here, and so much for us to keep listening and learning about (I’ll continue my reflections with a particular focus on language next week). I invite you to explore the Boarding School Healing Coalition’s website and learn more about the impact of boarding schools in your area. If you’re living in Arizona, consider attending one of the upcoming Listening events in August or September. Also, please pray for all who have been impacted in such painful and long-lasting ways.
I know so little and yet I grieve with you. I have to think carefully about exploring more deeply; it feels like yet another invitation to be overwhelmed and saddened by our hubris. Thank you for your willingness to go to the hard places. Once again I will share blog.
I hear you, Joyce…and you’re welcome. Perhaps a key to doing this work is to find the human connection…I do it for my biracial grandson, and on the days when it’s hard, I remember that he has no choice but to live with racism every day…. Thank you for sharing my post!
Peace,
Shirin
I was visiting the Benedictine Monastery here in Pittsburgh this weekend and met two sisters from Ohio, also visiting. One of them introduced me to a book that I have just started called Becoming Kin: an Indigenous Call to Unforgetting the Past and Reimagining Our Future by Patty Krawec. I think it will be an inspired story and interesting read. Also free if you have Audible / Amazon Prime.
Thank you for this book recommendation, Joyce! I’m glad that you are making connections and finding resources that are not overwhelming.
Peace,
Shirin
I agree with Joyce. We know so little about our past abuses of Native peoples, and it’s just horrifying when we do learn snippets here and there. I grew up in Phoenix and knew that there was an Indian school, and that Indian School Road got its name because of the school. It was only about a mile or so south of Central High, where I attended, not knowing anything about it and never hearing any mention of it. A really good resource for learning about the history of how Native peoples were treated here is Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz’s An Indigenous Peoples’ History of the United States, published in 2014 by Beacon Press.
Thank you, Aston, for sharing your experience and your resources. I also grew up near Indian School Road, in Albuquerque, NM. I did hear about the school, and I think some about how abusive it was…but honestly, at this point my memory isn’t so clear about what I learned young and what I learned later about it! Thank you for sharing about that book.
Peace,
Shirin