National Native American Boarding School Healing Coalition

TO PURSUE TRUTH, HEALING, AND RECONCILIATION TO ADDRESS ONGOING INTERGENERATIONAL TRAUMA FROM THE U.S. INDIAN BOARDING SCHOOL POLICY AND TO SUPPORT COMMUNITY LED HEALING.

EDUCATION - NABS HAS MADE SIGNIFICANT PROGRESS IN DEVELOPING AN ACCESSIBLE EDUCATIONAL PLATFORM. THIS YEAR, NABS STAFF WERE INVITED TO GIVE 60 PRESENTATIONS IN-PERSON AND VIRTUALLY THROUGHOUT THE UNITED STATES, INCLUDING ALASKA, TO EDUCATE PEOPLE ABOUT INDIAN BOARDING SCHOOL HISTORY AND IMPACTS. APPROXIMATELY 5,500 PEOPLE RECEIVED EDUCATION IN-PERSON, WHILE AN ADDITIONAL 4,000 PEOPLE WERE REACHED THOUGH VIRTUAL EDUCATIONAL PRESENTATIONS. ADDITIONALLY, NABS STAFF AND BOARD PROVIDED MORE THAN 50 MEDIA INTERVIEWS TO EDUCATE THE PUBLIC. DEBORAH PARKER, NABS'S CEO, AND JAMES LABELLE, BOARD OF DIRECTORS 1ST VICE PRESIDENT, PROVIDED TESTIMONY AT THE DOI PRESS CONFERENCE ON THE BOARDING SCHOOL INVESTIGATION, AND TESTIFIED AT A CONGRESSIONAL HEARING, WHICH AIRED LIVE ON PBS/CSPAN, EDUCATING A LARGER AUDIENCE, EXCEEDING 1 MILLION VIEWERS. SINCE ITS COMPLETION, NABS'S "TRUTH AND HEALING" INDIAN BOARDING SCHOOL EDUCATION CURRICULUM CONTINUES TO BE SOUGHT AFTER AT A HIGH RATE, WITH OVER 9,000 TOTAL DOWNLOADS FROM NABS'S WEBSITE IN THE PAST YEAR. THE CHILD REMOVAL STUDY TEAM HAS CONTINUED TO ENGAGE PARTICIPANTS, APPROACHING THE GOAL OF 1,000 TOTAL. THE TEAM HAS BEGUN IMPLEMENTING A PLAN TO WRITE A BOOK WITH EMERGENT FINDINGS. PRESENTLY, THE TEAM HAS CHOSEN A DECOLONIZING INDIGENOUS METHODOLOGY THAT SITUATES THE PROCESS OF READING AS CEREMONY TO INFORM THE QUALITATIVE AND QUANTITATIVE ANALYSIS THAT WILL FOLLOW. NABS HAS CONTINUED TO DEVELOP THE NATIONAL INDIAN BOARDING SCHOOL DIGITAL ARCHIVE (NIBSDA). ACCESS TO BOARDING SCHOOL RECORDS FOR DIGITAL ARCHIVES IS SLOWLY OPENING AFTER COVID PANDEMIC RESTRICTIONS, ALLOWING NABS TO SCAN 4,312 PAGES OF BOARDING SCHOOL RECORDS IN 2022. NABS EXPANDED THE DOCUMENTING OF EXPERIENCES BY ENGAGING BOARDING SCHOOL SURVIVORS AND DESCENDANTS IN AN ORAL HISTORY PROJECT. THE FIRST ORAL HISTORY RECORDING OF 7 BOARDING SCHOOL SURVIVORS AND DESCENDANTS FROM THE UPPER SIOUX COMMUNITY IN MINNESOTA WILL SERVE AS A MODEL FOR FUTURE PROJECTS.

HEALING - FOR THE SECOND YEAR, NABS HELD A VIRTUAL HEALING SUMMIT IN PLACE OF AN IN-PERSON CONFERENCE. THE THEME OF THE 2-DAY SUMMIT WAS "HEALING IN A TIME OF TRUTH AND JUSTICE" TO ACKNOWLEDGE A NEW ERA OF BOARDING SCHOOL HEALING. PANEL PRESENTATIONS FEATURED BOARDING SCHOOL SURVIVORS, ACADEMIC RESEARCHERS, NATIONAL AND INTERNATIONAL POLICY MAKERS, AND YOUTH ACTIVISTS. A TOTAL OF 956 PEOPLE REGISTERED, OF WHICH 65 WERE BOARDING SCHOOL SURVIVORS, 397 BOARDING SCHOOL DESCENDANTS, AND 564 ENROLLED IN TRIBAL NATIONS.SURVIVOR CARE PACKAGES: NABS HAS BECOME INCREASINGLY AWARE OF OUR ROLE IN PROMOTING HEALING FOR INDIGENOUS COMMUNITIES, GROUNDED IN TRADITIONAL PRACTICES AND VALUES, AND PRIORITIZING SURVIVORS OF BOARDING SCHOOLS WHO ARE STILL AMONG US. NABS LAUNCHED A PROGRAM TO PROVIDE 400 CARE PACKAGES TO BOARDING SCHOOL SURVIVORS BY THE END OF 2022. VIRTUAL HEALING EVENTS HAVE BECOME A NECESSARY OFFERING OF NABS. FIVE VIRTUAL HEALING EVENTS WERE HELD BETWEEN FEBRUARY AND SEPTEMBER. APPROXIMATELY 800 PEOPLE REGISTERED TO PARTICIPATE IN VIRTUAL HEALING EVENTS. ALL EVENTS ARE RECORDED AND MADE AVAILABLE VIA YOUTUBE. FEBRUARY HEALING EVENT: MEDICINE FOR SELF-LOVE HEALING WITH DR. ROSALYN LAPIER (BLACKFEET/MTIS), WHO SHARED METHODS OF INTERGENERATIONAL HEALING THROUGH PLANT MEDICINES, TRADITIONAL ECOLOGICAL KNOWLEDGE, AND SELF-CARE. APRIL HEALING EVENT: "HEALING FROM CHILD REMOVAL: BOARDING SCHOOLS, ADOPTION, AND FOSTER CARE" INCLUDED A PANEL DISCUSSION ON HEALING FROM THE IMPACTS OF CHILD REMOVAL MODERATED BY SANDY WHITE HAWK AND FEATURED BOARDING SCHOOL SURVIVOR JIM LABELLE SR. AND OGLALA LAKOTA NATION ADOPTEE DAKOTA HOSKA. MAY HEALING EVENT: "SELF-CARE IN A TIME OF TRUTH AND HEALING: HEALING OUR SPIRIT, CREATING SAFETY WITHIN" WAS DEDICATED TO ADDRESSING THE HISTORIC RELEASE OF THE DOI INVESTIGATIVE REPORT AND HOW TO HANDLE TRAUMA REACTIONS WITH PROVEN METHODS OF WORKING WITH INTERGENERATIONAL TRAUMA PRESENTED BY SERENE THIN ELK (MH, LAC, QMHP), AND MODERATED BY DEIDRE WHITEMAN. JUNE HEALING EVENT: "TWO SPIRIT AND LGBTQ+ RESILIENCE: THE LEGACY AND IMPACTS OF INDIAN BOARDING SCHOOLS" INCLUDED A PANEL MODERATED BY CANDI BRINGS PLENTY AND FEATURED LENNY HAYES (BOARDING SCHOOL SURVIVOR), LANDA LAKES, AND SADE. SEPTEMBER HEALING EVENT: "VOICES FROM PEZIHUTAZIZI OYATE: BOARDING SCHOOL HISTORIES" FILM SCREENING INCLUDED A PANEL DISCUSSION ON NABS'S DIGITIZATION AND ORAL HISTORY PROJECT IN PARTNERSHIP WITH THE UPPER SIOUX COMMUNITY. THE PANEL WAS MODERATED BY KENRICK ESCALANTI AND FEATURED COMMUNITY MEMBERS DR. CHRIS MATO NUNPA, ADAM SAVARIEGO, AND FALCON GOTT. ON SEPTEMBER 29, 2022, NABS HELD "A NIGHT OF REMEMBRANCE: HONORING BOARDING SCHOOL SURVIVORS AND THOSE WHO NEVER MADE IT HOME" VIGIL THAT OFFERED SONG, DANCE, AND PRAYER IN REMEMBRANCE, HONOR, AND ENCOURAGEMENT FOR BOARDING SCHOOL SURVIVORS AND DESCENDANTS. THE EVENING EVENT WAS ATTENDED BY MORE THAN 150 PEOPLE.

ADVOCACY - NABS MADE GREAT STRIDES IN EDUCATING DECISION MAKERS AND ALLIES ABOUT THE NEED FOR A FEDERAL TRUTH AND HEALING COMMISSION ON INDIAN BOARDING SCHOOL POLICIES. TWO RESOLUTIONS WERE BROUGHT FORWARD TO THE NATIONAL CONGRESS OF AMERICAN INDIANS, WHICH THEY ACCEPTED: 1) CALL FOR AN APOLOGY FROM THE BIDEN-HARRIS ADMINISTRATION FOR THE GENOCIDE OF NATIVE CHILDREN AND FAMILIES, AND 2) FOR THE POPE TO RESCIND THE DOCTRINE OF DISCOVERY AND SUPPORT A TRUTH AND HEALING COMMISSION FOR THE UNITED STATES. ENDORSEMENTS FOR THE TRUTH AND HEALING COMMISSION CONTINUE TO BE RECEIVED. NABS LAUNCHED "7 WEEKS OF ACTION FOR 7 GENERATIONS" IN SEPTEMBER WITH A TWO-HOUR ZOOM EVENT TO BUILD MOMENTUM FOR A TRUTH AND HEALING COMMISSION. AN ADVOCACY TOOLKIT WAS ROLLED OUT, ALONG WITH "THE TIME IS NOW," AN ADVOCACY VIDEO PRODUCED BY NABS OUTLINING WHAT THE TRUTH AND HEALING COMMISSION WILL DO.NABS COLLABORATED WITH THE SHAWNEE TRIBE AND THE UNITED INDIAN NATIONS OF OKLAHOMA TO FACILITATE A "BREAKING THE SILENCE" DAY-LONG SUMMIT IN TULSA, OKLAHOMA. OVER 250 INDIVIDUALS WERE PRESENT TO HEAR ABOUT THE RESEARCH, EDUCATION, AND ADVOCACY WORK OF NABS, WHILE OFFERING TWO PANELS: BOARDING SCHOOL SURVIVOR PANEL, AND ADVOCACY AND EDUCATION PANEL.NABS AND THE DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR (DOI) ENTERED INTO A MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING TO FORMALIZE COLLABORATION EFFORTS TOWARD THE INTERIOR'S BOARDING SCHOOL INITIATIVE PROCESS. NABS JOINED DOI SECRETARY HAALAND AND ASSISTANT SECRETARY NEWLAND IN A PRESS CONFERENCE IN MAY ANNOUNCING THE PUBLIC RELEASE OF VOLUME 1 OF THE INVESTIGATIVE REPORT CALLED FOR AS PART OF THE FEDERAL INDIAN BOARDING SCHOOL INITIATIVE. THE INVESTIGATION IDENTIFIED 408 FEDERALLY FUNDED INDIAN BOARDING SCHOOLS ACROSS 37 STATES, AS WELL AS UNMARKED BURIAL SITES AT 53 DIFFERENT SCHOOLS. NABS HAD A PRESENCE AT THE THREE DOI "ROAD TO HEALING" LISTENING SESSIONS HELD WITH TRIBAL NATIONS IN OKLAHOMA, MICHIGAN, AND SOUTH DAKOTA. NABS PROVIDED SUPPORT TO BOARDING SCHOOL SURVIVORS AND DESCENDANTS AT THESE EVENTS, DISTRIBUTED TRAUMA RESOURCE PACKETS, AND RECORDED ORAL HISTORIES OF SURVIVORS WHO WANTED TO SHARE THEIR STORY WITH OTHERS.