U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i), chairman of the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs, and U.S. Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), vice chairman of the Committee, released the following statements on the Department of the Interior’s release of its second and final investigative report initiated by its Federal Indian Boarding School Initiative. In addition to expanding on the number and details of institutions to include attendee deaths, the number of burial sites, participation of religious institutions and organizations, and federal dollars spent to operate these institutions, Volume 2 also includes policy recommendations for consideration by Congress and the Executive Branch to continue to chart a path to healing and redress for Indigenous communities.
“The Department’s concluding report on its investigation into federal Indian boarding school policies is an important next step toward a full accounting of the United States’ systemic effort to erase Native identities, languages, and cultures for its own gain,” said Chairman Schatz. “The report’s recommendations align with our efforts in the Senate through the Truth and Healing Commission on Indian Boarding School Policies Act to establish a Native-led commission to uncover the full scope of what took place at these schools and provide a platform for survivors to share their experiences and for the nation to hear and acknowledge their pain. Too many have waited too long for truth, closure, and justice. I’m committed to getting our legislation over the finish line so we can begin the work of delivering it.”
“I welcome the Interior Department’s second and final investigative report further detailing the U.S. Government’s role in operating the federal Indian boarding school system and its impacts on Native children and their families,” said Vice Chairman Murkowski. “This investigation also documents the existence of marked and unmarked graves at 65 of the schools, and that as many as 973 children, heartbreakingly, never returned home. These findings affirm my resolve to get the Truth and Healing Commission legislation signed into law. The more we understand the truth about this era, the more we are able to help all those affected find healing.”
Volume 1 of the Federal Indian Boarding School Initiative Investigative Report can be accessed here and Volume 2 can be accessed here.
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