Hard to Imagine

Yesterday, the Seattle Times ran an article about tribal healing projects undertaken to deal with the multi-generational community trauma resulting from the brutality of American Indian boarding schools in the US. Three years ago, the Canadian government appropriated $5 billion for a similar project to help First Nations survivors of the schools in Canada. Australia, which also stole children from its aboriginal population for the purpose of indoctrination in white supremacy, has yet to put any money where its mouth is.

Canadian aboriginals, of course, had to fight in court to get their government to discover its humanity. American original peoples have so far chosen not to pursue claims in the judicial system. For all three of these modern states, founded as English colonies, we find it hard to understand why there is any reluctance at all to voluntarily remedy the harms done to the internally displaced and abused native children. Perhaps the collective conscience of white society just can’t handle it.

I mean, it’s one thing to steal land. But children? That is hard to imagine.