US gov’t: At least 53 burial sites at Indigenous boarding schools

Red painted handprints cover the empty spot at a park in Albuquerque, New Mexico, where a historical marker for the Indigenous children who died while attending a boarding school nearby was removed [File: Susan Montoya Bryan/AP Photo]

Los Angeles, California –  A US government investigation has found at least 53 separate burial sites at federal Native American boarding schools, and officials expect to find more, according to a new report released Wednesday.

The initial findings of the investigation, which examined records under federal control, show that hundreds of children died in boarding school, but officials say the number is likely to climb into the thousands or tens of thousands as the investigation continues.