Introduction:
Throughout their relationship with the United States, Native Americans have been politically, socially, economically, and culturally marginalized. Deemed ‘savages’ by dominant White society, Native Americans have been continually displaced from ancestral lands, forced to assimilate to White ways, and denied their cultural heritage and identity. The creation of boarding schools and the implementation of assimilationist policies were a deliberate act by the United States government to eliminate and eradicate the presence of Native Americans peoples and culture from the continent.
Although many boarding schools closed in the mid-1900s, the United States has continued to deny Native Americans their land, cultural identity and heritage by incarcerating the population in institutions similar to boarding schools; prisons. This project will look at the ways Native American communities, families and children have been, and continue to be, affected by boarding schools and prisons, and will look at the ways these institutions and their narratives are intertwined.
Disclaimer:
It is important to acknowledge and respect the individual experiences and separate histories of each Native American tribe and community within the United States. We must recognize the unique and different experiences and perspectives each Native American student, prisoners and family have, and respect the individuality of their stories.
This project is a broad overview of the experiences of Native American peoples and communities in assimilationist institutions such as boarding schools and prisons. We recognize the differences between each institution and the variety of ways these facilities and their reverberating effects continue to manifest within Native communities.
The ‘Typical Day’ section of this project is a outline of the day-to-day life of Native American boarding school students and Native American prisons.
The narrative does not try to make sweeping assumptions on the experiences of Native American children, communities or inmates. With thousands of students and prisoners subjected to a variety of these institutions, there are thousands of unique and different stories and experiences.
This project is a broad overview of the experiences of Native American peoples and communities in assimilationist institutions such as boarding schools and prisons. We recognize the differences between each institution and the variety of ways these facilities and their reverberating effects continue to manifest within Native communities.
The ‘Typical Day’ section of this project is a outline of the day-to-day life of Native American boarding school students and Native American prisons.
The narrative does not try to make sweeping assumptions on the experiences of Native American children, communities or inmates. With thousands of students and prisoners subjected to a variety of these institutions, there are thousands of unique and different stories and experiences.