Truth and Healing Commission on Indian Boarding School Policy Act

I 116TH CONGRESS 2D SESSION H. R. 8420 To establish the Truth and Healing Commission on Indian Boarding School Policy in the United States, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES SEPTEMBER 29, 2020 Ms. HAALAND (for herself, Mr. HUFFMAN, Mr. HECK, Ms. KENDRA S. HORN of Oklahoma, Mr. MULLIN, Mrs. DAVIS of California, Ms. BONAMICI, Ms. DAVIDS of Kansas, Mr. O’HALLERAN, Mrs. KIRKPATRICK, Mr. COLE, Mr. GALLEGO, Ms. MCCOLLUM, and Mr. LUJA´N) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Education and Labor, and in addition to the Committee on Natural Resources, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee con- cerned A BILL To establish the Truth and Healing Commission on Indian Boarding School Policy in the United States, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Truth and Healing 4 Commission on Indian Boarding School Policy Act’’. 5 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:29 Oct 24, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8420.IH H8420 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 8420 IH SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 1 Congress finds as follows: 2 (1) The Indian Boarding School Policy was 3 adopted by the United States Government to strip 4 American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) chil- 5 dren of their indigenous identities, beliefs, and tradi- 6 tional languages to assimilate them into White 7 American culture through federally funded Chris- 8 tian-run schools, which had the effect of cultural 9 genocide. 10 (2) For nearly a century, between 1869 and the 11 1960s, the Federal Government implemented the In- 12 dian Boarding School Policy. This policy authorized 13 the forced removal of hundreds of thousands of AI/ 14 AN children, as young as 5 years old, relocating 15 them from their homes in Tribal communities to one 16 of the 367 Indian Boarding Schools across 30 17 States. 18 (3) By 1926, nearly 83 percent of AI/AN 19 school-age children were enrolled in Indian boarding 20 schools in the United States. However, because near- 21 ly 62 percent of the school records have been lost or 22 destroyed, the full extent of the Federal Indian 23 boarding school policy has not been identified. 24 (4) Gen. Richard Henry Pratt, the founder and 25 superintendent of the Carlisle Indian Industrial 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:29 Oct 24, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8420.IH H8420 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 8420 IH School in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, stated the ethos of 1 this policy to ‘‘kill the Indian in him, and save the 2 man’’. Founded in 1879, the Carlisle Indian School 3 set the precedent as the first government-funded off- 4 reservation Indian boarding school in the United 5 States where over 10,000 AI/AN children were en- 6 rolled from over 140 Tribes. 7 (5) The Indian Boarding School policy was de- 8 signed to assimilate AI/AN children into White 9 American culture by stripping them of their cultural 10 identities, often through physical, sexual, psycho- 11 logical, and spiritual abuse and neglect. Many of the 12 children who were taken to boarding schools never 13 returned to their communities. At the Carlisle In- 14 dian School alone, approximately 180 AI/AN chil- 15 dren were buried. 16 (6) While attending Indian boarding schools, 17 AI/AN children suffered additional psychological 18 abuses as they were sent to White-owned homes and 19 businesses for involuntary and unpaid manual labor 20 work during the summers. Many children ran away 21 and remained missing, or died of illnesses due to 22 harsh living conditions, abuse, and/or substandard 23 health care provided by the schools. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:29 Oct 24, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8420.IH H8420 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 8420 IH (7) Many of the children were buried in un- 1 marked graves or off-campus cemeteries. Inaccurate, 2 scattered, and missing school records make it nearly 3 impossible for families to locate the final resting 4 place of their loved ones, especially since only 38 5 percent of the school’s records have been located 6 from 142 of the known 367 boarding schools. 7 (8) Parents of the children who were forcibly 8 removed to the boarding schools were prohibited 9 from visiting or engaging in correspondence with 10 their children. Parental resistance to compliance 11 with this harsh no-contact policy resulted in their in- 12 carceration or loss of access to basic provisions in- 13 cluding food rations, clothing, or both. 14 (9) The 2018 Broken Promises Report pub- 15 lished by the United States Commission on Civil 16 Rights reported that AI/AN communities continue to 17 experience intergenerational trauma resulting from 18 experiences in Indian Boarding Schools that divided 19 cultural family structures, damaged indigenous iden- 20 tities, and inflicted chronic psychological ramifica- 21 tions on AI/AN children and families. 22 (10) The Centers for Disease Control and Pre- 23 vention Kaiser Permanente Adverse Childhood Expe- 24 riences Study shows that adverse or traumatic child- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:29 Oct 24, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8420.IH H8420 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 5 •HR 8420 IH hood experiences disrupts brain development leading 1 to a higher likelihood of negative health outcomes as 2 adults including, but not limited to, heart disease, 3 obesity, diabetes, and autoimmune diseases. AI/ANs 4 suffer from disproportional rates of each of these 5 diseases compared to the national average today. 6 (11) The longstanding ramifications of the in- 7 humane treatment of AI/AN children and families at 8 these boarding schools continues to impact Tribal 9 communities through intergenerational trauma, cy- 10 cles of violence and abuse, disappearance, health dis- 11 parities, substance abuse, premature deaths, and ad- 12 ditional undocumented psychological trauma. 13 (12) The continuing lasting implications of the 14 Federal Indian Boarding School Policy and inhu- 15 mane treatment of AI/AN children and families in- 16 fluenced modern U.S. Department of the Interior’s 17 Bureau of Indian Education (BIE)-operated schools. 18 These schools have often failed to meet the many 19 needs of nearly 50,000 AI/AN students across 23 20 States. 21 (13) The replication of assimilation policies of 22 the boarding school era also presented itself through 23 other Federal programs like the Indian Adoption 24 Project (1958 to 1967) that placed AI/AN children 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:29 Oct 24, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8420.IH H8420 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 6 •HR 8420 IH in non-Indian households and institutions for foster 1 care or adoption across 25 States. 2 (14) The Association on American Indian Af- 3 fairs reported that the continuation of cultural geno- 4 cide and assimilation policies through Federal AI/ 5 AN adoption and foster care programs between 6 1941 to 1967 separated as many as one-third of Na- 7 tive American children from their families in Tribal 8 communities, subsequently prompting the creation of 9 the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) to stop the re- 10 moval of children. 11 (15) In some States, over 50 percent of foster 12 care children in State adoption systems are Native 13 American. The general lack of public awareness, in- 14 formation, and acknowledgment of the residual im- 15 pacts of the Indian Boarding School Policy and in- 16 tergenerational trauma remain, signaling the over- 17 due need for an investigative Federal committee to 18 further document and expose the assimilation and 19 cultural genocide implemented under this policy. 20 SEC. 3. PURPOSES. 21 The purposes of this Act are as follows: 22 (1) To establish a new Truth and Healing Com- 23 mission on Indian Boarding School Policy in the 24 United States to formally investigate and document, 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:29 Oct 24, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8420.IH H8420 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 7 •HR 8420 IH for the first time in history, cultural genocide, as- 1 similation practices, and human rights violations of 2 Indian Boarding Schools in the United States, to 3 study the impact and ongoing effects of historical 4 and intergenerational trauma in Tribal communities, 5 and to provide a forum for Indigenous victims and 6 families to discuss the personal impacts of physical, 7 psychological, and spiritual violence. 8 (2) To further develop recommendations for the 9 Federal Government to acknowledge and heal the 10 historical and intergenerational trauma caused by 11 the Federal Indian Boarding School Policy and 12 other cultural genocide practices, including rec- 13 ommendations to stop the continued removal of AI/ 14 AN children from their families and Tribal commu- 15 nities under modern-day assimilation practices car- 16 ried out by State social service departments, foster 17 care agencies, and adoption services. 18 SEC. 4. TRUTH AND HEALING COMMISSION ON INDIAN 19 BOARDING SCHOOL POLICY IN THE UNITED 20 STATES. 21 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 22 (1) COMMISSION.—The term ‘‘Commission’’ 23 means the Truth and Healing Commission on Indian 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:29 Oct 24, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8420.IH H8420 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 8 •HR 8420 IH Boarding School Policy in the United States estab- 1 lished by subsection (b)(1). 2 (2) INDIAN BOARDING SCHOOL POLICY.—The 3 term ‘‘Indian Boarding School Policy’’ means the 4 policy of the Federal Government under which more 5 than 100,000 American Indian and Alaska Native 6 children were forcibly removed from their family 7 homes and placed in any of 460 Bureau of Indian 8 Affairs-operated schools, including 367 Indian 9 boarding schools, at which assimilation and ‘‘civiliza- 10 tion’’ practices were inflicted on those children as 11 part of the assimilation efforts of the Federal Gov- 12 ernment, advancing eradication of indigenous peo- 13 ples’ cultures in the United States. 14 (b) ESTABLISHMENT.— 15 (1) IN GENERAL.—There is established the 16 Truth and Healing Commission on Indian Boarding 17 School Policy in the United States. 18 (2) PURPOSE.—The purpose of the Commission 19 is to investigate the experience, impacts, and ongo- 20 ing effects of the Indian Boarding School Policy, in- 21 cluding the impacts and ongoing effects of the inter- 22 generational trauma inflicted on American Indian 23 and Alaska Native families, including physical, psy- 24 chological, sexual, and spiritual violence inflicted on 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:29 Oct 24, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8420.IH H8420 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 9 •HR 8420 IH Native American children as young as 5 years old 1 for speaking indigenous languages or engaging in 2 traditional practices. In addition to, obtaining accu- 3 rate records and oral accounts of the events that 4 took place at the boarding schools. 5 (3) MEMBERSHIP.— 6 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Commission shall 7 be composed of members appointed as follows: 8 (i) Not fewer than 1 member ap- 9 pointed by the President. 10 (ii) Not fewer than 1 member ap- 11 pointed by the President pro tempore of 12 the Senate, on the recommendation of the 13 majority leader of the Senate. 14 (iii) Not fewer than 1 member ap- 15 pointed by the President pro tempore of 16 the Senate, on the recommendation of the 17 minority leader of the Senate. 18 (iv) Not fewer than 2 members ap- 19 pointed by the Speaker of the House of 20 Representatives, of whom not fewer than 1 21 shall be appointed on the recommendation 22 of the minority leader of the House of 23 Representatives. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:29 Oct 24, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8420.IH H8420 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 10 •HR 8420 IH (B) REQUIREMENTS FOR MEMBERSHIP.— 1 To the maximum extent practicable, the Presi- 2 dent and the Members of Congress shall ap- 3 point members of the Commission under sub- 4 paragraph (A) to represent diverse experiences 5 and backgrounds so as to include Tribal rep- 6 resentatives and experts who will provide bal- 7 anced points of view with regard to the duties 8 of the Commission, including Tribal representa- 9 tives and experts— 10 (i) from diverse geographic areas; and 11 (ii) who possess personal experience 12 with, diverse policy experience with, or spe- 13 cific expertise in, Indian boarding school 14 history or the Indian Boarding School Pol- 15 icy. 16 (C) PRESIDENTIAL APPOINTMENT.—The 17 President shall make appointments to the Com- 18 mission under this paragraph in coordination 19 with the Secretary of the Interior and the Di- 20 rector of the Bureau of Indian Education. 21 (D) MEMBERS TO BE INCLUDED.—To the 22 maximum extent practicable, the membership of 23 the Commission shall include— 24 (i) 1 representative from each of— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:29 Oct 24, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8420.IH H8420 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 11 •HR 8420 IH (I) the National Native American 1 Boarding School Healing Coalition; 2 (II) the National Indian Edu- 3 cation Association; 4 (III) the American Indian Higher 5 Education Consortium; and 6 (IV) National Indian Child Wel- 7 fare Association; 8 (ii) the Director or Administrator 9 of— 10 (I) the Bureau of Indian Edu- 11 cation; 12 (II) the Office of Indian Edu- 13 cation of the Department of Edu- 14 cation; 15 (III) the Administration for Na- 16 tive Americans of the Administration 17 for Children and Families of the De- 18 partment of Health and Human Serv- 19 ices; and 20 (IV) the National Museum of the 21 American Indian of the Smithsonian 22 Institution; 23 (iii) not fewer than— 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:29 Oct 24, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8420.IH H8420 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 12 •HR 8420 IH (I) 5 members of different Indian 1 Tribes from diverse geographic areas, 2 to be selected from among nomina- 3 tions submitted by Indian Tribes; 4 (II) 2 health care or mental 5 health practitioners, counselors, or 6 providers with experience in working 7 with former students of Indian board- 8 ing schools, to be selected from among 9 nominations of Tribal chairs or elect- 10 ed Tribal leadership local to the re- 11 gion in which the practitioner, coun- 12 selor, or provider works; 13 (III) 3 mem [Text truncated for display. 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