The Thomas Indian School and the Irredeemable Children of New York By Keith R. Burich
The Thomas Indian School and the Irredeemable Children of New York By Keith R. Burich Hardcover 0815634544 9780815634546 The Thomas Indian School and the Irredeemable Children of New York The story of the Thomas Indian School has been overlooked by history and historians even though it predated, lasted longer, and affected a larger number of Indian children than most of the well known federal boarding schools. Founded by the Presbyterian missionaries on the Cattaraugus Seneca Reservation in western New York, the Thomas Asylum for Orphan and Destitute Indian Children, as it was formally named, shared many of the characteristics of the government operated Indian schools. However, its students were driven to its doors not by Indian agents, but by desperation. Forcibly removed from their land, Iroquois families suffered from poverty, disease, and disruptions in their traditional ways of life, leaving behind many abandoned children. The story of the Thomas Indian School is the story of the Iroquois people and the suffering and despair of the children who found themselves trapped in an institution from which there was little chance for escape. Although the school began as a refuge for children, it also served as a mechanism for civilizing and converting native children to Christianity. As the schools population swelled and financial support dried up, the founders were forced to turn the school over to the state of New York. Under the State Board of Charities, children were subjected to prejudice, poor treatment, and long term institutionalization, resulting in alienation from their families and cultures. In this harrowing yet essential book, Burich offers new and important insights into the role and nature of boarding schools and their destructive effect on generations of indigenous populations.
My grandfather graduated from this place I found this thesis very repetitive I just wanted to learn about this 100 yr old institution The Thomas Indian School and the Irredeemable Children of New York Conceived as a scholarly historical account this work is accessible to the average reader to understand the evolution of the treatment of the Haudenosaunee in NY state It is very well documented and addresses the historical events that lead to the boarding school system in general and the peculiarities of the Thomas Indian School Burich inspires us to reflect on how good intentions are not necessarily sufficient alone to ensure just treatment or success and how self centeredness in what must be a service can have devastating consequences While one can understand the good intention of believing acculturation and assimilation would be beneficial for the indigenous peoples one cannot escape In reading this history to realize the system was not at the service of the families being aided but at the service of the goals of society at large Essentially Natives were simply not attended to in the 20th Century according to updated educational standards This is a major thesis of the latter half of the book which prompts me to want to know what was going on at institutions such as Our Lady of Victory Services in nearby Lackawanna The effects of radical separation from family and culture is presented in detail I wish in the closing chapter some less extreme case studies could have been examined though they have been too personal to share in any depth Other cases have been documented in video form in other places.
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For example Unseen Tears available on YouTube Considering the current news from Canada regarding residential schools this is an excellent read The Thomas Indian School and the Irredeemable Children of New York A sad part of history but I thought the book was well done with a good narrative flow solid research and a balanced approach The Thomas Indian School and the Irredeemable Children of New York
The story of the Thomas Indian School has been overlooked by history and historians even though it predated lasted longer and affected a larger number of Indian children than most of the well known federal boarding schools Founded by the Presbyterian missionaries on the Cattaraugus Seneca Reservation in western New York the Thomas Asylum for Orphan and Destitute Indian Children as it was formally named shared many of the characteristics of the government operated Indian schools However its students were driven to its doors not by Indian agents but by desperation Forcibly removed from their land Iroquois families suffered from poverty disease and disruptions in their traditional ways of life leaving behind many abandoned children The story of the Thomas Indian School is the story of the Iroquois people and the suffering and despair of the children who found themselves trapped in an institution from which there was little chance for escape Although the school began as a refuge for children it also served as a mechanism for civilizing and converting native children to Christianity As the school s population swelled and financial support dried up the founders were forced to turn the school over to the state of New York Under the State Board of Charities children were subjected to prejudice poor treatment and long term institutionalization resulting in alienation from their families and cultures In this harrowing yet essential book Burich offers new and important insights into the role and nature of boarding schools and their destructive effect on generations of indigenous populations The Thomas Indian School and the Irredeemable Children of New York.