Tristan Hawkins

Indigenous Boarding Schools

Indigenous Boarding Schools are a thing of the past, but what where they? And what was

their intended purpose? Well tonight I will be “teaching” all about them from my own personal

knowledge (no websites used). Let us dive right in.

So what were Indigenous Boarding Schools and why does every native american look at

you like a psycho when you ask about them? Indigenous Boarding Schools were made in the late

1800’s and early 1900’s as a way of culling the native american culture. More often than naught,

they were “schools” that beat the culture out of you in a more physical sense than mental. Mass

graves have been reported near these “schools” and there are many that are haunted by spirits of

the deceased. Most if not all are boarded up and all are no longer in use, or else they would have

most likely been burned to the ground. You can think of these “schools” as todays indoctrination

or internment camps. Doesn’t paint a pretty picture, does it?

Well why didn't they just not go if it was a school of sorts? Just because it has the word

school in it means nothing. It was more like a max security prison disguised as a college living

space. Indigenous peoples were taken forcefully from households, ripped from their families and

placed in these so called “schools” to “liberate them from their social wrongs so they can become

civilized”. This was the mindset of these crazed and deranged “teachers” they were assigned that

forced them into being their ideas of social rights. As such, all native men that took pride in

having long hair were forced to cut it, leaving them with no pride left. All women were taught

that they should not worry about anything in life except having children and keeping the living

space nice and tidy. All of these kids were taught english, being punished severely if they spoke
 Tristan Hawkins

their native tongue for anything. It was all cruel and unusual punishment being forced upon kids

ranging anywhere from the ages of 5 and up.

So why didn't they just run away? Good question here's the worst possible answer you

could get. They did. Or at least they tried. You know how every school has police doing

perimeter checks around the school to keep dangerous people out? Well these “schools” had

people (white men and women alike) on horseback that would keep the kids in, tracking them

down and beating them if they ever stepped outside the campus. Sometimes they would drag

them back and beat them to death just to prove a point to everyone else watching. So not only did

they get beat often for not talking english, they also had to live with the constant fear that they

could possibly die if they ever did anything wrong.

Why didn't the government do anything if it was cruel and unusual punishment? Because

the government was in on it! They helped provide the funding for these so-called schools and the

teachers and “police” (people on horseback call them whatever) were all getting paid to make

sure that the Indian man was a functioning member of society. That he would have to settle down

and get a job or die. Fun fact of the day, some people were born two-spirited, a term meaning

that they were a man or woman spirit placed in the wrong body by “Attias” or “The Father”.

These two-spirited people were considered a blessing and were often treated with the utmost

respect and usually had much wisdom and knowledge to share, so they often held high titles.

These people were muscular women that did the work of men, and effeminate men that did the

work of women, often pairing with those of the same gender as some tribes believed there

needed to be one to do the work of men and their spouse should do the work of women. That

changed when the white community came into the picture, belittling these couples and saying

that a couple is only a man and a woman, no exceptions. With no one to stand up for them, two-
 Tristan Hawkins

spirited people started getting shunned from their own communities and slowly came to be

forgotten like all of our culture.

These “schools” caused the downfall of almost all native american teachings, with no

written records being kept it was almost the death of a culture. It has started making a comeback

with a few brave families who were hidden as children, being taught in hushed whispers of an

almost long forgotten language. These people are now living on, helping their culture grow back

into the loving, caring, tribe it used to be. Like everything used to be.

Works Cited

Me mind (and a few obscure memories of instagram posts that filled in a few more blanks)