GENERATIONAL WEALTH II: THE INDIGENOUS PEOPLE (A Cultural Overview)

 GENERATIONAL WEALTH II: THE INDIGENOUS PEOPLE

(A Cultural Overview)

The United States’ first family separation policy removed one-third of all American Indian children from their families and tribes.

As promised in my previous blog post, Generational Wealth, this cultural piece, Part II, Generational Wealth: Indigenous People, is a continuation and cultural perspective that introduces the American Natives known as Indigenous People, who suffered emotionally, spiritually, and culturally. Similarly relates to the topic of generational wealth and the lack thereof. And my take on Pope Francis’s visit to the church dedicated to Our Lady of the Seven Sorrows, where he blessed a banner with the names of the abused children who died in residential schools in Canada, praying in Maskwacis Cemetery. 

Since the 1860s and beyond, cruel atrocities removed Native American children from their families and placed them into foster care and orphanages under child welfare. Although there was no tangible wealth to distribute, the magnitude of religious and cultural wealth was interrupted with no conceivable way to salvage the loss and no reparations made either to the children or their parents. Indigenous parents were never given any information about their children’s whereabouts. No phone numbers or addresses, while most parents never saw their children again.              

     Before                                                                          After

Children from the Reservation

Children from the Chiricahua Apache tribe before and during their time at the Carlisle school. 

(Credit: The National Archives)

The Indigenous children were forced to abandon their language, diet, and other customs, compelled to learn English, and reprimanded if they used their native language. A select few were taken at an incredibly early age, unaware of which home country they were from and the name of their former tribe. Their tribal values were entirely stripped. As they became adults, they were confronted with thoughts about “No man’s land” —[waste and unowned land in an uninhabited and desolate area that may be under dispute between parties who leave it unoccupied out of fear and uncertainty]. These Native Americans became adults with no family, no religion, and no connection to a community. They were lost in a system of chaos, spiritually, emotionally, physically, and financially.

In one or more orphanages and homes, multiple children were forced to adopt the religion of that institution and household. Psychologically, they were housed and not raised by their parents' family structure and values. Thousands of children did not remember their birth names and never knew that their current names were given to them in foster care. They did not realize when given their new names, new birth certificates, birth dates, and social security numbers were assigned to them also. Physically hundreds of the children were abused and starved near death. About a hundred more were placed on farms and factories to work without compensation. Others were situated with white families with businesses, and those particular children were made to work for them. Indigenous youngsters who aged out of the system hit society hard and became lost with no family ties or tribe to turnabout. As a result, many youngsters became alcoholics, and few committed crimes to support themselves. Some became familiar with their English names but never received their statistics records, such as birth certificates and social security cards. Lonely, with nowhere to return, a handful of the Indigenous children began to wander the streets right where the cruel atrocities abandoned them. 

In contrast, as the Indigenous children were taken away from their parents, from a country and land with vast uninhabited land, I cannot help but feel how they felt targeted for their identity. These fragmented people exhibited shattered lives in society, known as a “lost cause.” No psychological intervention or resources were made available to assist them in their healing process.

Formal education was scarce for many nationalities of that period. But, most importantly, teaching the younger generation the life skills unique to the culture was paramount. Language, medicine, social skills, and customs can be imparted within a calculated ritual process and carry a higher caliber of “Generational Wealth” rather than physical wealth. These qualities can be passed from one generation to another. Robbing in the causal sense, as seen in the carnal perspective, the American Government did not take or admit responsibility for wrongdoing regarding the magnitude of the cruel atrocities actions for more than one hundred years.

In 1879 the first government-sponsored boarding school, Carlisle Indian Industrial School, was opened in Carlisle, Pennsylvania. Commissioner of Indian Affairs William Atkinson Jones sent this letter to superintendents of all federal reservations and agencies in January 1902, decreeing that meals would be denied if the male children’s long hair were not cut. Over the next two decades, several legislations were passed to uphold the intention of separating Native American families. They continue to implement the strategies within their contingency of “Forced Assimilation” on a defenseless population.

According to the “Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) of 1978,“ federal law governs the removal and out-of-home placement of Native American children. The law was enacted after the Federal Government recognized that Native American children were being removed from their homes and communities at a much higher rate than non-Native children. The law established Federal standards for the removal and placement of Native children and termination of parental rights to protect the best interests of Native American children and keep them connected to their families and Tribes.

The ICWA was enacted after Native American children were systematically removed—often without evidence of abuse or neglect that would be considered grounds for removal—and placed with non-Native families, intending to deprive them of their Native family or culture. The law delineates the roles of State and Tribal governments in child welfare cases involving children who are members of or eligible for membership in Federally recognized Tribes.

In the last administration, more than enough heard the news about parents and children being separated at the border, and we became horrified. Just imagine children living, playing, and learning their cultural skills quietly on their reservation; without notice, they have been snatched away with no forwarding information spanning decades. We cannot allow ourselves to get bitter when we learn of these insensitive atrocities. Instead, become intercessors and pray for forgiveness and peace. How can we begin to heal from all the hurt? “When hurt, people will continue to hurt others,” liken unto the aphorism that has been attributed to everyone from bestselling rabbi Yehuda Berg and evangelical megachurch pastor Rick Warren to actor and two-time Spider-Man Andrew Garfield. Often, bullies like those cruel atrocities may have been individuals who themselves have undergone and endured some form of emotional and physical pain only to continue afflicting their pain upon innocent Indigenous People. But so far, President Biden is the first United States President to sign the recognition of the Indigenous People into law.

My Prospective

After the latest news story broke, I became aware that a public apology did not only happen in the United States but also in Canada. As an individual and the head of the Catholic Church, I deeply admire Pope Francis’ (Jorge Mario Bergoglio) courage. And commend the step he took on his recent visit to Canada when he apologized for the role the Catholic Church played in the horrendous episode in overseeing decades of abuse at some of the nation’s residential schools. Particularly in the abuse and death of hundreds of children from the Indigenous tribes. His posture, in spirituality and human decency, should be applauded. I am sure it took lots of prayer, humility, and courage to take a bold stand. A stand that the entire country of the USA failed to make. 

On July 23, 2022,  Alan Zdan and Assemblywoman Britnee Timberlake of the New Jersey 34th District discussed “Power and Politics” on News 12. Ms. Timberlake emphasized that she and congressional colleagues were preparing a bill that would allow homeowners undergoing the foreclosure process to have the opportunity to repurchase their homes for the listed amount. The bill will be enacted under the “Housing and Redevelopment Act.”

There is still so much we are not taught in all subjects and History Departments in our secondary schools and universities. I firmly believe History should be studied as a learning tool for enrichment. Education and learning should be an ongoing process. The perspective of life becomes our viewpoint after being educated. The most challenging and disturbing part I learned is that various boarding schools had cemeteries for Native American deceased children. The report from the Carlisle School gave an account of about two hundred children who died during its operation. They were buried at the school cemetery. It is a perplexing thought that there was no accountability for the lives lost. 

Their American English names and social security numbers were confiscated without their parent's consent. That sneaky deception made their parents unaware of name changes and their whereabouts. However, my examination of the scale of operation tells a different story. The revelation estimates it was three to four times the number of children taken that were unaccounted for, with the possibility of them being dead and buried without a death certificate. It was in an era of poor record keeping. No county clerk needed to certify their death, and they were never counted in the census. Therefore, no death certificate was ever issued. Sadly, those Indigenous parents and the abducted children would be disconnected forever.

As you read this blog post, I ask you, folks, to ponder on the information provided, understanding that the orchestration and the endeavors have allowed me to enhance my writing skills with the help of the School of English Studies Department at Kean University. Together we strive to impart the information to you for enlightenment as the Indigenous community hopes for forgiveness and peace. In closing, I leave you with a final thought by Native Chief Dan George.