Biden formally apologizes- -One of the most horrific chapters in American history should be ashamed-

On October 25, President Biden officially issued an apology to Indigenous peoples for the government’s forced enrollment of Native children in residential schools. Speaking in Raven, Arizona, he stated, “We should feel ashamed. Frankly, it is inexcusable that it took us more than 150 years to deliver this apology.” He urged a moment of silence to honor those who lost loved ones and the generations who experienced this trauma.

“As President of the United States, I formally apologize for our actions,” Biden declared, labeling this as “one of the darkest chapters in American history.” He acknowledged the significant abuse and harm inflicted on children over the years.

In his remarks, Biden emphasized the importance of recognizing that generations of Indigenous children were taken away, often to places they did not know, among people they had never met, and speaking languages they had never heard. He detailed the emotional, physical, and sexual abuses these children endured, forced labor, and instances where children were adopted without their biological parents’ consent. Tragically, some were abandoned in unmarked graves.

Responding to Biden’s speech, 79-year-old Rosalie expressed that she felt a “sharp pain in her heart.” While she appreciated the acknowledgment of historical wrongs, she lamented the irreversible damage done to Indigenous communities. “I’m glad the wrong is recognized, but ‘I’m sorry’ isn’t enough. A whole generation and our future were destroyed.”

Historically, the U.S. federal government supported residential schools through laws and policies starting in 1819, with these institutions still operational into the 1960s. According to the National Native American Boarding School Healing Coalition, by the 1920s, most Native school-age children were enrolled in federally or religiously operated residential schools, where many suffered physical, emotional, and sexual abuse, resulting in the deaths of nearly a thousand children.

This apology marks the first time a U.S. president has addressed the violence faced by the thousands of Indian children forced into residential schools over generations.