When the U.S. federal government began its Indian Boarding School Initiative in the mid-19th century, the goal was clear: to erase Indigenous cultures through a process of forced assimilation.
Now, the head of the Department of the Interior hopes to address the generations-long fallout from those policies.
On Wednesday, Interior Secretary Deb Haaland advocated for a Truth and Healing Commission to examine past U.S. government efforts to eradicate the languages, identities and cultural practices of Native Americans, Alaska Natives, and Native Hawaiians. Her comments came as she updated the U.S. Senate Committee on Indian Affairs on her department's ongoing investigation into federal boarding schools, which released its first report last month.
Haaland told the committee the story behind the federal boarding schools is "a part of America's story we must tell."
