President Biden Issues Apology for U.S. Treatment of Indigenous Nations

Biden apologized for the role the U.S. had in the Native American Boarding School system that harmed Native communities for generations

Alessandra Benitez

Joe Biden apologized for Native American Boarding Schools and promised to aid and invest in programs aimed at achieving Tribal sovereignty and self-determination in one of his last press releases as president. While a verbal acknowledgment is always necessary, many have wondered what this administration can do to back up its statement, especially considering this country’s history of attacking indigenous nations. In an official statement made by the White House, the current administration outlined the steps they’ve already taken to work towards reparations. 

The White House release claims that Biden’s apology followed what have been ‘historic’ investments in the Indian Country by the president’s administration, including $32 billion in the American Rescue Plan, $13 billion in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to build high-speed internet, roads, bridges, and clear water sanitation infrastructure in Tribal Communities, and $700 million in the Inflation Reduction Act in Native communities for climate change resilience and adaptation programs, drought mitigation, home electrification, and clean energy development (whitehouse.gov). 

One of the biggest attacks towards Indigenous communities that Biden apologized for was the attack on sovereignty and culture of native families in the 1800s and 1900s  through the use of  Native Boarding Schools. For over 150 years the federal government ran boarding schools that forcibly removed and kidnaped generations of Native children from their homes to boarding schools far away from their communities. While the exact number of kidnapped children is unknown, by 1900 there were 20,000 children in Native Boarding Schools, and by 1925 that number had more than tripled (Boarding School Healing Project Website). Once there, kids would face physical, emotional, and sexual abuse, with an estimated 973 children dying in these schools. This boarding school system was designed to assimilate Native Americans by destroying Native culture, language, and identity through harsh methods. In short, Native American boarding schools were another tool used in the genocide this country conducted against Indigenous Peoples. While President Biden’s apology is an important step in acknowledging the many ways our government has attacked Native sovereignty, moving forward it is what this administration does to mend those relationships that matter.