What to KnowNew York Gov. Kathy Hochul formally apologized Tuesday for the “atrocities” she says had been dedicated at an upstate boarding faculty the place Native American youths had been forcibly separated from their households and compelled to assimilate into American society.The Democrat, talking on Seneca Nation land alongside tribe leaders, mentioned college students that attended the Thomas Asylum of Orphan and Destitute Indian Youngsters had been subjected to “unimaginable physical, emotional and sexual assaults” through the faculty’s greater than 100-year existence.Greater than 2,500 college students from tribes throughout the state attended the varsity in western New York, which operated from 1875 to 1957 and was amongst lots of of such boarding colleges throughout the U.S.
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul formally apologized Tuesday for the “atrocities” she says had been dedicated at an upstate boarding faculty the place Native American youths had been forcibly separated from their households and compelled to assimilate into American society.
The Democrat, talking on Seneca Nation land alongside tribe leaders, mentioned college students that attended the Thomas Asylum of Orphan and Destitute Indian Youngsters had been subjected to “unimaginable physical, emotional and sexual assaults” through the faculty’s greater than 100-year existence.
“Instead of being a haven for orphan children, it became a place of nightmares,” Hochul mentioned. “A place some would call a torture chamber, the site of sanctioned ethnic cleansing. That’s what was going on here. Trying to eradicate the long, proud story of the Senecas.”
Greater than 2,500 college students from tribes throughout the state attended the varsity in western New York, which operated from 1875 to 1957 and was amongst lots of of such boarding colleges throughout the U.S.
Seneca President J. Conrad Seneca, whose father attended the varsity, mentioned the apology is overdue. He mentioned his household and numerous others have quietly borne their ache for generations.
“The atrocities that our children suffered at the Thomas Indian School have remained hidden in the shadows for far too long,” he mentioned in an announcement forward of the go to. “At long last, our people will hear, directly from the Governor, the words we have waited lifetimes for the State of New York to say — ‘We’re sorry’.”
On her go to, which the tribe mentioned is the primary by a sitting New York governor, Hochul mentioned she realized about how the varsity’s harsh surroundings affected generations of tribe households.
“The children in that school didn’t feel like they had a family. They were lonely,” she mentioned. “No one gave them hugs or kisses goodnight, so when they became parents themselves, they were not conditioned to nurture or give love.”
Hochul vowed her funds will suggest the creation of recent schooling supplies about native indigenous communities and their contributions.
“A deeper understanding of the people whose land we are on and what they have gone through. That is a first step forward,” she mentioned.
The Thomas Indian College was initially established by Presbyterian missionaries in 1855 and taken over by the state in 1875.
It was amongst greater than 400 government-supported colleges established all through the nation with the purpose of assimilating Native American youths.
However the colleges, which operated for roughly 150 years, had a devastating impression on Native American communities. Workers on the colleges labored to strip Native youngsters of their traditions and heritage. Lecturers and directors reduce their hair, forbade them from talking their very own languages and compelled them into guide labor.
College students, forcibly separated from their households, endured torture, sexual abuse and hatred from faculty officers. Greater than 900 youngsters died on the colleges, the final of which closed or transitioned into completely different establishments many years in the past.
Former President Joe Biden in October 2024 visited the Gila River Indian Neighborhood in Arizona to formally apologize to Native Individuals for the “sin” of the nation’s government-run boarding faculty system.
However at the very least $1.6 million in federal funds destined for analysis tasks on the boarding colleges have been among the many casualties of President Donald Trump’s efforts to rein within the federal forms.
Some tribe members had been skeptical of Hochul’s goodwill gesture.
Lori Quigley, a Niagara College professor whose mom attended the Thomas faculty for 10 years as a younger baby, mentioned she hopes the governor provides greater than phrases.
“An apology is one thing,” she mentioned by cellphone forward of the go to. “What actions is she going to take in acknowledging this? These traumas are still impacting our communities.”
Matthew Hill, a tribe member whose father was among the many final class of scholars earlier than the varsity was shuttered, dismissed the go to as “empty words.”
In any case, he mentioned, the Hochul administration and the tribe have been negotiating for years over how a lot if any of the tribe’s on line casino revenues the state must be allowed to gather.
“They’re saying sorry for the school, but they’ll continue extorting money from us in the form of gaming revenues,” mentioned Hill. “It’s a joke.”
