ONEIDA, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) — The Oneida Nation says it is “encouraged” by President Joe Biden’s formal apology for government-run boarding schools that forcibly separated Native American children from their families.
In a visit to Gila River Indian Community land in Arizona, Biden called the schools a “sin” and a “blot on American history.”
Oneida Chairman Tehassi Hill released this statement Friday:
We are hopeful that meaningful and better relations can be cultivated between the Indigenous nations and the United States government following the apology from President Biden. It is imperative that United States recognizes this painful history and its ongoing repercussions. Healing requires not only acknowledgment but also a commitment to support Native American communities in reclaiming their heritage and fostering resilience.
We must work together to promote awareness, education, and reparative justice to honor the experiences of those affected and to ensure a future for the next seven generations that instills pride and confidence in our ancestry. We stand in solidarity with all Indigenous people on our journey toward healing and empowerment. We are encouraged the United States President has followed in suit as the Pope and Canadian leadership in acknowledging and apologizing for dishonor committed by their predecessors.
In 2019, the Oneida Nation received the remains of three teenagers recovered from the Carlisle Indian Industrial School cemetery in Pennsylvania. Jemima Metoxen and Sophia Caulon were buried at the Oneida sacred burial grounds. Sophia Powless was buried at the Holy Apostles Cemetery.
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