Unspoken: America's Native American Boarding Schools [FULL DOCUMENTARY]

Most were not given the choice to go or not. I work for my tribe and have heard horror stories. I pray the generational trauma put on Native American's will no longer have a hold. It is all about speaking up to heal and stop the pain. The Government should hold up it's promise to seat a Cherokee Delegate in the House of Representatives... Treaties are still being broken today

My grandmother was in a boarding school and that school impacted her life in a negative way. My grandmother always tried to hide her indigenous roots she was ashamed to be native so she tried to fit in with the white peoples and that really didn’t work she was never welcomed by them when she was in her early 20s she married a soldier he was a white man so she lived on the army base but she was segregated from the white people she wasn’t able to use their bathrooms and public places and the women would have Tupperware parties and my grandma was never invited and that just broke her heart. My mother was raised on base and she also wasn’t welcomed by the whites they wouldn’t let their children play with my mom or her siblings, on the military base my mom and her siblings were called engines and Mesicans and the white people wouldn’t allow their children to play with my mom. My grandmother often talked about her time in boarding school she would talk about how she would get beat up by the nuns when she would speak her native language and my grandmother was unruly so she would often get locked in what she would call a dark small moldy broom closet for days with out food or water until the nuns would let her out if she agreed to act normal. My grandmother passed from cancer when I was in my 20s and I remember her always flying the United States flag on her car because she wanted people to know she was American she would always tell me that if she didn’t have the flag on her car or home people might think she was Mexican or middle eastern and she didn’t want that and the truth of the matter is my grandma was Apache Native American and it’s sad that she was treated the way she was treated I wish my grandmother would have seen how beautiful she was and how beautiful our people are. My mother married another Native American my dad is Pueblo and my mom is Apache I married a Aztec man and my daughter is going to marry a Apache man our family is no longer ashamed to be indigenous we embrace our roots and our proud to be Native American ✊🏾✊🏾✊🏾✊🏾

That was done in a horrible way. Forcing those children to be taken away from their families. I’m Irish , we were mistreated. But never taken away from our parents.

As a soon to be teacher with native american ancestry my heart breaks for every single person that had to endure this. I cannot stop crying but I cant wait to incorporate lessons with native stories, art and traditions.

My father fought in ww2 and told us without the code talkers. We would have lost the war. Then last year my son did his school report on them. My son found it fascinating

I grew up in a Native American boarding school in the 60’s and 70’s. The caretakers were known as “dorm aides” short for Boarding School Instructional Aides. At age nine, I was disciplined by being dragged around by my hair on the floor by one of the dorm aides. I was physically thrown every which way by my my hair. Years later, I cheered when I learned this physical abuser died. That was one of the happiest days of my life. I lived through trauma and still have not been able to forgive the ethnic cleansing of the Indigenous Peoples of the United States. Today there is racial divide still on reservations. I once heard a young Native American girl, in 2002’ say “There’s a white person let’s run him off the road!” We are conditioned to hate our abusers! We need healing but oppression continues. Not just Black Lives Matter, ALL lives matter!

My grandmother , aunt and uncle were all subject to this. My grandmother fared the best as she was the oldest. My uncle committed suicide as an adult and my aunt was traumatized by the experience as she was very young. Their mother died when my aunt was born. My grandmother was well educated and never spoke poorly about the nuns beyond that they were tough. But my aunt never said a kind word about them. I never heard my grandmother and aunt speak Creek until I was an adult and almost fell out of my chair. Had no idea they could still speak the language. My grandmother stayed very close to her tribe and was involved up to the end of her life at 93. She would be proud today of how far they have come.

These are the one of several things that make me feel so ashamed to be American. It'll never be enough to say I'm so very sorry for the things your ancestors were made to endure at the hands of my ancestors. 😢 I feel especially sorry because this whole fiasco could've, and most certainly, should've been handled entirely differently.

Ben Bonga went to Carlisle and went home to White Earth, got married and gathered his wife, mother and father and took them Lavonia, MI. He worked for GM and raised his children, retired and moved his family to the UP of Michigan, his real homeland. His youngest daughter, Patricia, married a wonderful man, Timothy Lasslett, who is Native, but does not know his tribe because his grandmother was adopted by white people and the Catholic adoption service obliterated her records. Patricia and Timothy had four children, one of whom I married. There has never been another husband in the history of the world that has been better. Be proud of your ancestors, some of them have walked through hell for you.

I AM OF THE LAKOTA DESCENDANTS AND THIS HURTS MY HEART TO WATCH EVENTHOUGH I HAVE ALWAYS KNOWN OF SAID ATROCITIES. HOW MANY TRAILS OF TEARS MUST THE NATIVES WALK ? IT WILL NEVER END THIS I KNOW. MY HEART BREAKS BUT YOU WILL NEVER BREAK MY NATIVE SOUL. A'HO

I’m from the city of Perris, in Riverside county, and I did not know this part of our history. This is why it’s is important to remember everyone’s history. Thank you 😊

what is sad is that I do not remember being taught about the trail of tears in school. I work at a facility for alcohol abuse and our clientele is Native American. I found out through them. That, is a disgrace but the important thing is..I know now. Great presentation!

It’s awful what they went through. No child should be treated this way 😢

My grandmother told me about this. It wasn't that long ago in the grand scheme of things.

My step grandmother taught at the Phoenix Indian School. She was a stern woman. I have been there many times. We had Dine live in our home. Such a hard chapter to see, but it is necessary to hear these stories so we can make amends.

Thank you for this most important presentation about the Atrocities of psychological genocide that were inflicted upon The People of The First Nations / Native Americans. One of my Great - Great Grandmothers appeared to have been one of the children who was made to endure this experience. The only clue I have is that I was told that She had beautiful penmanship & handwriting which I believe indicates that she must have gone to one of these schools perhaps even Carlisle. Everything humanly possible must be done to restore & heal the psychological damage that has been done & passed down through the generations of Native People. I am so happy that President Obama made a Formal Apology to our Nations First People. I am Very happy to see that many tribal nations have taken the education of their Beautiful children into their own hands. It is in this way that they can prevent & end the generational trauma from continuing. I Wish for Peace, Love & Joy as well as Pride, Dignity & Respect to continue to spread to All Native People.♥️🌻💐🌹🌺♥️🙏🏽🌞🌈

We are still being oppressed today. I lived assimilated, in an urban center. I felt the need to return to my traditional territory. I don't live on reserve but only blocks away. I work for my band. Its nice walking into a store or doctors office and no one judges my brown skin. I am learning my language and traditions right along side my children. I now speak up for all the children in our community in government forums.

The government was so wrong for doing that. Why can’t the United States government acknowledge to the First Nations people the wrong that was done their families? Other countries have acknowledged this to their people.

This documentary taught me so much!

Haskell indian school kidnapped my mother she was an orphan her mother was murdered trying to escape an abusive white man who was my mother's father, my mother has taken her journey home but she left my brother's and sister's a legacy of compassion, strength never dwelling on her pain. Yes she talked about her experience in graphic detail showing us the physical wounds of enduring being whipped with a bull whip and hot rod iron burns on her back. My mother endured a great deal amd never allowed it to define her future she later met my father and they loved each other and carried each other for 5 decades until their death.damn these catholics to hell, there is nothing they can say to convince me they have a soul.