The Time Is Now
This Great Idea was created by the National Native American Boarding School Healing Coalition.
The National Native American Boarding School Healing Coalition, Tribal Nations across the U.S., religious institutions, and allies have been advocating for Congress to pass the Truth and Healing Commission on Indian Boarding School Policies Act (S.1723/H.R. 7227) this year. The Act has reached a critical milestone, but needs a groundswell of support to ensure it is enacted this year.
This bipartisan bill would establish a commission to investigate the 150-year federal Indian boarding school policy era and locate Native American children who died in these schools. It also offers a platform for boarding school survivors and their descendants to share their stories and pave a path toward healing.
The bill passed unanimously through the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs in 2023. However, despite overwhelming bipartisan support, House leaders have yet to schedule a vote. Calls and outreach to House and Senate leaders are needed RIGHT NOW!
Congress reconvenes on November 12, 2024. If this bill isn’t passed by the end of the year, it will be back at ground zero. Please contact your Congressional leaders and urge them to bring the Truth and Healing bill to the floor for a vote.
Join in supporting this critical legislation. Visit the National Native American Boarding School Healing Coalition website to learn more about the history of Indian boarding schools and the coalition of Tribes, organizations, and institutions backing this bill.
Learn more about the National Native American Boarding School Healing Coalition and the legislation being proposed here.
What better way to honor Native American Heritage Month (November) than supporting this legislation as a congregation?
Give people some context:
- Invite youth and adults to learning sessions on Native American Boarding Schools.
- The ELCA Truth-Seeking and Truth-Telling Initiative on Indian Boarding Schools Learning Toolkit 2024 (which we helped create) offers five, 5-session series of learning – with videos, interviews, books, articles, and more to explore together.
- Gauge the learning for your congregation’s capacity: Phase 1 is introductory, Phase 2 digs into the history, Phases 3 and 4 offer survivor and descendant stories, Phase 5 invites action.
- Find Resolutions and Petitions in support of the bill here.
- Create a prayer – to share in worship, with home-bound participants, and for any who are calling to remember that this is a sacred action and to invite the Spirit’s intervention.
- The ELCA Truth-Seeking and Truth-Telling Initiative on Indian Boarding Schools Learning Toolkit 2024 (which we helped create) offers five, 5-session series of learning – with videos, interviews, books, articles, and more to explore together.
- Move from learning to action with congregational support of this bill.
- Based on NNABS’s message, develop a locally-informed phoning ‘script’ to ensure clear talking points and lend callers confidence.
- Find Congressional member contact info here.
- Support home-bound callers: invite them to learning sessions online, engage them in preparing the prayer and script, then send them the prayer, script, and legislators’ names and phone numbers
- Create a phone-in ‘party’, open with the prayer, talk through the process, give everyone your ‘script’, call your congresspersons, and share pizza as folx reflect on their phone calls. (Include home-bound folx online!)
- Invite those not able to attend the ‘party’ to phone whenever their schedule allows; equip them with the prayer, script, and contact list.
- Follow-up the calling times with a special offering in support of the National Native American Boarding School Healing Coalition.
- Support the National Native American Boarding School Healing Coalition here.
- Continue to include the prayer in worship throughout the month of November – and onward!
- Celebrate together when/if the legislation passes!!
- Commit to ongoing support – especially if it isn’t brought to the vote.
