Native American boarding school abuse, reparations talk with tribes and church

#inform-video-player-1 .inform-embed { margin-top: 10px; margin-bottom: 20px; } #inform-video-player-2 .inform-embed { margin-top: 10px; margin-bottom: 20px; } GAYLORD — Northern Michigan churches are inviting native communities to hear their stories and discuss potential reparations this weekend. The conference is from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Oct. 5 at the headquarters for the Catholic Diocese in Gaylord. The Roman Catholic Church played a large role in the abuse of Native American children sent to boarding schools throughout the 20th century. FILE – A makeshift memorial for the dozens of Indigenous children who died more than a century ago while attending a boarding school that was once located nearby is displayed under a tree at a public park in Albuquerque, N.M., on July 1, 2021.  Susan Montoya Bryan In June, bishops from around the U.S.wrote a letter apologizing for the church’s role in destroying Native American culture to assimilate the children. “The family systems of many Indigenous people never fully recovered from these tragedies, which often led to broken homes harmed by addiction, domestic abuse, abandonment and neglect,” church leadership said in a 56-page document. Sister Sue Gardner is helping to organize the event. She says it’s the fourth such gathering between tribal...