: Sharon Marie Brunner
: Michigan Indian Boarding School Survivors Speak Out A Narrative History
: Modern History Press
: 9781615998043
: 1
: CHF 6.00
:
: Geschichte
: English
: 182
: DRM
: PC/MAC/eReader/Tablet
: ePUB

The impact of Indian boarding schools has been devastating for generations of Native Americans, and the aftershocks continue to affect their descendants today. Michigan was home to three: in Baraga, Harbor Springs and Mt. Pleasant. The last to close was Holy Childhood School of Jesus, in Harbor Springs, in 1983. Sharon Marie Brunner set out to intensively study the family history and boarding school experience of nine Native American survivors who attended either the Mt. Pleasant or Harbor Springs institutions. Each faced problems linked to the scars of this experience, although their recollections included positive and negative reports. A woman whose mother attended one of these institutions, and a member of the Sault Ste Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians, Brunner is uniquely positioned to understand the cultural background.
Brunner deftly teases out the themes from in-person interviews transcribed in 2001. Surprising similarities and differences are explored in this highly researched social work treatise. Abuses are documented in the hope that we can prevent such a calamity from ever happening again. Whether or not you have any Native American heritage, this book is crucial to under-standing the lived experience of our fellow human beings and how we can do better. Social workers, educators and those in human services must read this book to develop policies that address the unique challenges and strengths of Native American people.
'Sharon Brunner provides a thoroughly researched, thoughtfully presented discussion of one of the dark sins of America: Indian Boarding Schools. The interviews with nine Northern Michigan residents, recounting their times in these schools and how the rest of their lives were affected, are deeply moving.' --Jon C. Stott, author, Native Americans in Children's Literature
'Sharon Brunner is a prolific writer who uses her Native American roots to craft stories that speak of the trauma Indigenous people experienced as a result of being forced to live in Christian boarding schools. Children were taken from their families, their culture and their roots. Brunner's true stories are written with a passion that flows from deep within her.' --Sharon Kennedy,EUP News
'Sharon Brunner'sMichigan Indian Boarding School Survivors Speak Out is meticulously researched and a recommended read for the serious student of Native American history. The author focuses on the accounts of nine former boarding school residents and the effects their experiences had on their lives and the lives of their descendants. Especially appreciated is the author's detailed background presentation against which she weaves these personal narratives. Reading this book is helping me as I research my grandfather's story.' --Ann Dallman, freelance journalist and author of the award-winningCady Whirlwind Thunder mystery series.
'InMichigan Indian Boarding School Survivors Speak Out, Brunner provides an unprecedented and systematic discussion, with first-person accounts of multifarious abuses to the boys and girls consigned to these institutions. The fact that many were able to resist and overcome this soul-crushing experience is a tribute to the resilience of the human spirit.' --Victor Volkman,Marquette Monthly
'As an Australian political activist, I have been campaigning for justice for my country's First Nations people. Therefore, Sharon Brunner's account of the sufferings of Native Americans in much the same way, during much the same times, spoke to my heart. It is essential for all of us to know about the genocide, disdain, cultural destruction, and discrimination heaped on all the original inhabitants of the lands Europeans stole. The book is based on Sharon's qualitative research and gives a useful literature survey. I can recommend it to anyone with empathy and a sense of justice.' --Robert Rich, PhD
From Modern History Press

Chapter 1 – About the Study

Prophecy

We knew this is the wealthiest part of this continent, because here the Great Spirit lives. We knew that the White Man will search for the things that look good to him, that he will use many good ideas in order to obtain his heart’s desire, and we knew that if he had strayed from the Great Spirit he would use any means to get what he wants. These things we were warned to watch, and we today know that those prophecies were true because we can see how many new and selfish ideas and plans are being put before us. We know that if we accept these things, we will lose our land and give up our very lives.

-Dan Katchongva, Hopi American Indian

Introduction

The Native American population have continued to face a multitude of problems such as high rates of suicide, substance abuse, depression, and poverty, as a possible result of the boarding school legislation and other acts of oppression. I was drawn to learn more about boarding schools and how they may have affected Native Americans and their culture, because my mother and her siblings were forced to attend the Holy Childhood boarding school in Harbor Springs, Michigan. Questions came to the forefront concerning the boarding schools. Was their experience similar to others who attended? Did the boarding schools and other acts of oppression cause many of the problems Native Americans currently encounter? The twenty-three years I spent on the Child Welfare Committee for the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians of which I am a member has revealed a multitude of problems Native American families experienced, which predominantly involved substance abuse along with child abuse and neglect. Did these families have a history of attending the boarding schools? Did the grandparents of the children represented at the meetings attend the boarding schools? The history of the Native Americans was laced with multiple forms of abuse from boarding schools, to being placed on reservations, infected with deadly disease and their land having been taken away. Even their right to practice their spiritual beliefs was taken away for approximately 100 years. The study revealed interesting information while it delved into the aftereffects of the boarding school experience.

I discovered that my paternal grandfather spoke fluent Anishanaabemowin (Ojibwe language) and French as well as English. His mother spoke Anishanaabemowin and broken English. When he was a child, the Jesuits moved into my grandfather’s childhood home to convert them to Christianity. My maternal grandfather’s family moved to St. Ignace. I am not sure when this move occurred. My grandfather stayed in his family of origin’s home to care for his mother after his father passed away. He was older when he met my grandmother at the time they married. The birth of their children occurred soon after that. My mother’s family of origin went through hard times. Jobs were scarce in St. Ignace and if you claimed to be a Native American, you could not get a job. My grandfather had to claim to be French. They survived problems such as substance abuse, and loss of employment. The “Depression” caused hardship for the family, who suffered from near starvation and had to obtain free clothing and other assistance.

Meanwhile, my grandparents’ children, which included my aunts, uncles, and mother were placed in the Holy Childhood Boarding School in Harbor Springs, Michigan, and other relatives’ homes because of their inability to care for them. Some of my uncles spent time in reform schools because of their unruliness. My mother told me my grandfather and some of my uncles had difficulty controlling their anger. My mother said she went through periods of rage as a teenager.

I was born and raised in St. Ignace, Michigan. Many of the people in the community had a strong dislike for Native American people. I remember they were referred to as “dirty useless Indians.” When I was seventeen, my mother obtained tribal identification cards for herself and her children. All along I had thought I was French and Dutch. I went along with this confusing situation but felt slighted, like I missed out on a lot. My mother and other family members searched to find documents such as death and birth certificates that explained our family’s lineage.

In 1987, I began working for the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians. I was employed as a secretary for the Binogii (child) Placement Agency until I took a position as an Education Coordinator for the Sault Tribe Johnson O’Malley Program., My interest in my Native American heritage was sparked considerably at this time. An elder took me under her wing and taught me part of the language, and instructed me in areas of interest such as powwow etiquette. I shared this information with the children in the classrooms in St. Ignace.

Around this period, my mother was introduced to the sweat lodge ceremony. She convinced me to go with her. I was scared and did not know what to expect. The people at the lodge welcomed me and told me to just let things happen. This and subsequent experiences at the sweat lodge have been extremely gratifying. They have taught me how to take care of myself and my family and how to find balance in my life.

As a Native American, it has been upsetting to learn about my ancestors and how they have been led to believe they were worthless and inferior because of their Native American lineage. My ancestors denied their heritage in order to fit as peacefully as possible into communities where various forms of discrimination were practiced against Native American people.

This project involved meeting with people who attended two boarding schools: the Federal Boarding School in Mt. Pleasant, Michigan, and the Holy Childhood Boarding School in Harbor Springs, Michigan. I did not meet with people who attended the boarding school in Baraga, Michigan. The interview participants provided me with valuable information about their boarding school experience. The Federal Boarding School closed in 1933, and I was fortunate to meet with three attendees. I felt elated that these three people agreed to share their experiences with me.

The terms used to define the tribal people with this project were Native Americans, indigenous, Indians, Indian people, the Anishanaabek (original people) or native people. The word “Indian” was derived from Columbus’ first encounter with people from the Western Hemisphere. He