Indian boarding schools

    The Indian boarding schools were started with an aim of incorporating the Indian tribes into the mainstream of the Americans culture through the introduction of education to them. These schools were established in 1860 whereby the government department of the Indian affairs built an Indian boarding school on the Yakima Indian reservation located in the State of Washington. This was piece of the plan that was developed by the reformers such as Henry and Herbert Welsh. Thus through this education system, the Indian people were to be taught on the essence of private possessions, material wealth, and monogamous family setups. The reformers, therefore, saw the significant to enlighten the Indian natives thus enabling them be able to accept the white men’s culture and values. Thus these boarding institutions were the perfect mechanism that they would have used so as to absorb the people and ideologies that acted as a hindrance to their destiny. These schools were able to incorporate the Indian youths. The first precedence of these boarding institutions was to first offer educational education where they would be taught on how to write, read and how to speak in English. Other subjects such as arithmetic as well as science, history and arts subjects would be introduced into the curriculum so as to enable them to realize the self-directing power of their thoughts (Stout 103). Thus the Indian youths would stand a chance to be individualized.  Religion, democrat, institutions and the political structure were also to be taught in these boarding schools as it assisted the Indians to be able to have citizenship training. As a result, they were able to eradicate all of what was left of the Indian way of living.  Thus the schools focused on producing students who were economically independent as they were taught on the work skills, values and attitude of possessive independence (Stout 103). However, there existed so many critics from the establishment of these schools.

This paper therefore will present and discuss on the two authors who wrote quotes on the Indian schools that are, Henry Ward Beecher and Sitting Bull (Teton Sioux).

    These two authors had their own perceptions of the Indian boarding schools that argued for the same cause. They both opposed the contemplation of transferring the children away from their home so as to incorporate them towards a white American culture. Sitting Bull author was a leader of the people of Sioux (Mapua 8). His early life was primarily invented the term slow because of his intentional way and his self-conscious movement of his study body. He thus joined war parties and he continually gained prestige because of his heroic acts in the field and thus he was given his name Sitting Bull. He later was the chief of Hunkpapa in 1857 and his leading skills were tested as he was dealing with the Americans. It is during his leadership that the people faced a lot of wars and most of the Americans died during the battles (Mapua 8). Afterwards, he had his individual quote on the manner in which the Americans tried to incorporate the inhabitants to their visions. Thus his trust was in the Great Spirit just as the inhabitants did and thus he felt that the Americans were not supposed to change the natives. This is because he believed that this was not in their position to do so but the Great Spirit was responsible and if truly wanted them to be white he would have created them white from the beginning. He thus understood that each and every man was different with different needs and wants.  Sitting Bull and most of the inhabitants supposed that they ought not to be enforced to transform and be made into being something that they were not originally created to be.

    Henry Ward Beecher was known as a preacher by the Americans in the 1800s and later he was a social Leader after the occurrence of the Civil War. He really assisted in the eradication of slavery. His earlier life as a preacher assisted him to become so encouraged towards the fairness of the slaves.

He, however, detested slavery since his earlier days in the seminary days as a preacher. He, therefore, became a great supporter of the Native Americans and this helped with the compromise of 1850 which was between the anti-slavery as well as the pro-slavery forces that assisted in banning of slavery in various states.

    According to the quote by Henry Beecher concerning common schools which translated to something related to Sitting Bull. In this quote, he elaborates on how the common school is used in feeding America since the sending of people to these schools would assimilate them with that generation. He also quoted that when a lion feeds on an ox it does not become an ox but when an ox feeds on a lion it becomes a lion. This means that the schools in general, are places where we send the students to learn on what the community wants them to be taught. Thus the schools make it possible for students to learn on the topics it wants them to learn and the structures their ideal views. His later on quote states that the students may be taught what the institution wants them to be taught but it does not necessarily mean that it transforms them. It, however, shows that the students have been able to learn that which has been taught to them. Henry’s quote therefore generally suggested that each and every person who entered these schools came out civilized and once they were civilized they become part of the American culture and hence there was no way to turn back on the native culture and traditions.

    The two quotes from the two authors can be applied to the Indians who were enforced into the boarding institution system. The contemplation of the boarding institution infuriated the Indian parents, for instance, the Carlisle Indian institution located in Pennsylvania (Littlefield 10). According to the quote by Sitting Bull, his main translation is based on the fact that the Indians were not made as the white people and therefore they should not be forced to see the same views as them. Thus Sitting believed that this education system would hurt the Native American’s culture.

The children’s experience was far much harsh and particularly for the young kids who were alienated from their relatives. They were restricted from speaking their native language and their lifestyle was changed into being like that one of the Americans. Discipline was administered to them in a severe way as they were deprived of some of the privileges and also they were threatened of being given corporal punishment if they misbehaved. In addition, they were ravaged by diseases while at boarding schools. This, therefore, resulted to some of the native parents rebelling to enroll their parents in these schools and this resulted to some of the police officials to enforce the education system on them by taking away the children by force to these schools (Littlefield 14). This is what Sitting Bull and Henry Beecher were against this form of education as it is a form of slavery.

    In conclusion, the Indian schools were not a success as they failed to recognize the importance of free will which would have helped in the enrollment of the children in the schools. The schools were not doing the right thing as they enslaved the Indian children which did not actually empower them. The change that they resulted from seeing the children was not really seen as these children hated the schools and thus all the teachings did not change them but rather it gave them the knowledge. It was, therefore, unimportant for these institutions to enforce the system onto the Indians so as to make them have the same views as the Americans since the world must be diverse with people of different values and beliefs. This is in accordance with Sitting Bull’s theory. It is through allowing the Indians to develop their own culture that would have enabled them to become a happy society willing to succeed without having to follow other people’s culture.

 

 

References

    Littlefield, Holly. Children of the Indian Boarding Schools. Minneapolis: Carolrhoda Books, 2001. Print.

    Mapua, Jeff. Sitting Bull. Rosen Publishing Group, Inc, 2015. Internet resource.

    Stout, Mary. Native American Boarding Schools. Santa Barbara: Greenwood, 2012. Print.