Newsletter Vol. 1 Issue 32

Truth and Healing with Indigenous Communities 

Note of Correction: There was an error in Wednesday, April 14th’s reflection. The text read “In the pain experienced for African Americans as they relive the traumas of the death of George Floyd in the criminal proceedings of George Floyd.” The text SHOULD have read “In the pain experienced for African Americans as they relive the traumas of the death of George Floyd in the criminal proceedings of Derek Chauvin.” We apologize to everyone for this error. 

 
On Holy Thursday, we were invited to reflect on narratives we learned about the first Thanksgiving, false narratives that painted Indigenous Peoples in a way that justified the colonization of what would become the United States. What is often not learned – or downplayed to make more palpable – is the role of White people and the American government is erasing an entire people from the continent through the spread of diseases, the forceful displacement of tribes continually westward, and the erasure of Indigenous cultures and ways of being. 

 
All of us can learn false narratives about White dominance whether we are White or people of color residing in the United States. Yet, these “truths” intentionally mask how power and privilege operate. In Jesus’ Passion, it was false narratives that condemned him to death. 

 
The good news of the Resurrection is that false narratives can be undone and the truth can be set free. Healing is possible when we see the world as it is. To unlearn consciously is to engage in acts of reparative reflection and in doing so reclaim a rightful understanding of history, culture, language, and identity. As individuals and persons at Jesuit institutions, we can work together to change what we know, and by extension how we understand who we are in relation to our history. 

 
One way this is done is through the creation of land acknowledgments. Land acknowledgments are statements produced by an organization that names the Indigenous Peoples who once lived on the land before it was seized by the federal government. Often read at the beginning of meetings or a class, they are invitations not just to name the groups, but to begin to imagine how to deepen one’s relationship with the Indigenous who came before us. This can happen through further learning about the peoples as well as committing resources to ensure better access to Indigenous persons in one’s organization. 

 
Another way Jesuit institutions can take action towards racial equity regarding Indigenous Peoples is to enter into formal processes to acknowledge previous harms committed. Red Cloud Indian School on the Pine Ridge Reservation, for example, has started a Truth and Healing process to “examining, with unflinching honesty, the trauma that our institution caused survivors, their descendants, and our wider community.” Led by alumni of the boarding school, the process allows Indigenous Peoples to learn and tell stories, examine archival materials, and have the school admit any wrongdoing. Through a continual journey of understanding, acts of healing and transformation may result in commemorations and individual and institutional change.   
 
While it is a difficult process to engage past traumas, ultimately, like last week’s reflection on Jesus’ reconciliation with Peter, this is a journey towards healing and restoration of relationships in a new way. Like Jesus, the wounds of betrayal, denial, and crucifixion are still marked on his body. Yet, in conversation with Peter, speaking honestly together, there lies the healing both need. And, so too, in the Truth and Healing process, the hope is that authentic and genuine healing can occur so that we may continue see how we belong together as one human family, diversely made in the image and likeness of God.

Resource: How the U.S. stole thousands of Native American children 

This video highlights U.S. governmental policy around Indigenous boarding schools, some of which were Jesuit-run institutions.

Questions for Reflection:

What did I learn about Indigenous experiences from the film? Do I know of any former or current boarding schools?

What Indigenous Peoples lived on the land in my community or home? How might I learn more or do research to find out more about these peoples? Are there currently Indigenous Peoples near me or on a reservation close to my community?