The last 'Indian War' was fought against Native American children
in the dormitories and classrooms of government boarding schools.
Only by removing Indian children from their homes for extended
periods of time, policymakers reasoned, could white "civilization"
take root while childhood memories of 'savagism' gradually faded to
the point of extinction. In the words of one official: 'Kill the
Indian and save the man.' This fully revised edition of Education
for Extinction offers the only comprehensive account of this
dispiriting effort, and incorporates the last twenty-five years of
scholarship. Much more than a study of federal Indian policy, this
book vividly details the day-to-day experiences of Indian youth
living in a 'total institution' designed to reconstruct them both
psychologically and culturally. The assault on identity came in
many forms: the shearing off of braids, the assignment of new
names, uniformed drill routines, humiliating punishments,
relentless attacks on native religious beliefs, patriotic
indoctrinations, suppression of tribal languages, Victorian gender
rituals, football contests, and industrial training. Especially
poignant is Adams's description of the ways in which students
resisted or accommodated themselves to forced assimilation. Many
converted to varying degrees, but others plotted escapes, committed
arson, and devised ingenious strategies of passive resistance.
Adams also argues that many of those who seemingly cooperated with
the system were more than passive players in this drama, that the
response of accommodation was not synonymous with cultural
surrender. This is especially apparent in his analysis of students
who returned to the reservation. He reveals the various ways in
which graduates struggled to make sense of their lives and
selectively drew upon their school experience in negotiating
personal and tribal survival in a world increasingly dominated by
white men. The discussion comes full circle when Adams reviews the
government's gradual retreat from the assimilationist vision.
Partly because of persistent student resistance, but also partly
because of a complex and sometimes contradictory set of
progressive, humanitarian, and racist motivations, policymakers did
eventually come to view boarding schools less enthusiastically.
Based upon extensive use of government archives, Indian and teacher
autobiographies, and school newspapers, Adams's moving account is
essential reading for scholars and general readers alike interested
in Western history, Native American studies, American race
relations, education history, and multiculturalism.
General
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