Would a government investigation of the “truth” about the legacy of Native American schools would be a remedy for the country’s “soul wound,” or would it be a culmination of the damage caused by the boarding school policy?

Context:
o The National Native American Boarding School Healing Coalition has demanded that the
government create a “Truth and Healing Commission” so that the scope of the “assimilative
policies” (5) of the Indian Boarding Schools and their impact upon Native American communities
can be fully known.

o Andrea Smith (Cherokee) explains that the policy of forcing Native American children to attend
boarding schools began in 1869 and continued for 100 years. thousands of children were subjected
to terrible conditions that included poor food, hard labor, physical and sexual abuse, and lifethreatening health conditions.

o Mary Crow Dog (Rosebud Sioux) recounts her experience as a student in an Indian boarding school
in the 1960s, a school that “was a curse for our family for generations”(11).

o George Tinker (Osage) expresses skepticism over the value of a Truth Commission. He asks,
“Which is worse: to deliberately inflict the most severe forms of psychological trauma upon entire
generations of someone else’s children as a means of accomplishing a desired result, or to
consciously prey upon the ensuing desperation of the victims to heal from their wounds as a means
of casting an appearance of legitimacy over that result and simultaneously maximizing its
efficiency? The only reasonable answer is that neither is worse than the other because neither can
be seen as “better,” that each is the extension of the other, and that evidence of what has been
elsewhere and quite accurately described as “the genocidal mentality” infuses both alternatives in
equal measure” (20).

Question:
Imagine that, at the request of The National Native American Boarding School Healing Coalition, the United
States Senate has decided to have a hearing to determine if it should establish a Truth Commission to inquire
into the Native American Boarding Schools. The Senate Committee has scheduled you to testify after George
Tinker. Write an essay to advocate for your position on the following questions:
Should the US Senate establish a Truth Commission in order to “begin a process of reconciliation with
Native Communities” (Smith 9)? Would a government investigation of the “truth” about the legacy of Native
American schools would be a remedy for the country’s “soul wound,” or would it be a culmination of the
damage caused by the boarding school policy?

The following are recommended:

Use ideas and facts from the reading set while also relying upon your own logic. For example, you
might agree with or disagree with an author’s logic or conclusions and give your reasoning. Or,
you might choose to emphasize the importance of one idea while diminishing the importance of
another, with an explanation of why you are valuing the ideas in this way.
Make connections between the readings. Although the authors’ approaches are different, you will
find parallels between them. For example, you could identify points of agreement and
disagreement, or you could point out that they are reaching similar conclusions by different
methods or logic.

The following are REQUIRED. Essays that don’t conform to these requirements will not be
graded

o The length of your essay must be 1,500 words or longer. This word count does NOT include
the following (which are not required): title page; abstract; bibliography/references/works
cited.
o Quote and/or paraphrase and work directly with material from the pieces by the National
Native American Boarding School Healing Coalition, Andrea Smith, Mary Crow Dog, and
George Tinker. Only use the reading set and no other sources (including from the internet).
Do not rely on information from courses you have taken.
o Attribute to its source any material that you summarize, quote, or paraphrase (using the
page numbers of the reading set). Page 1 of this reading set provides examples of what
proper attribution looks like. We are using MLA style, but you may also use APA style or
any other style you’re comfortable with.

o Your own ideas and thinking are necessary and important, and you cannot pass this
evaluation without them. However, you must base your essay on the information
contained in this set of readings, and you must engage with the arguments contained in
the set of readings. Do not give an account of your own life experience. We want your
ideas but not your life story.

o Only receive assistance with writing your paper from employees of UMass Boston—not
from friends, relatives, or non-UMB tutors. Tutoring is available through the writing
proficiency program, but you must schedule your appointments promptly because we
usually run out of appointments.

o You may not use a text translator, a paraphraser, or other electronic writing assistant.
However, you can and should use the spelling- and grammar-checker built into your word
processing program, a writer’s handbook, and a dictionary or thesaurus.

o Incomplete or late-submitted portfolios will not be graded. Review the portfolio
requirements here.

o Portfolios that include any paper that employs academic dishonesty or plagiarism will be
treated in the manner as outlined in the Student Code of Conduct, which can be
downloaded in PDF form at this link. The consequences of violating these policies are
serious and may include suspension or expulsion.

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