REVITALIZING OUR APACHE LANGUAGE

As tribal people, our education is tied to the Earth, our Ancestors, our language and our prayers. However, we have seen the Western system of education differently. For us, Western education was once a system of oppression. As you know, many of our ancestors were taken away from our tribe as children to receive an education at boarding schools. This was a practice throughout the United States. In BIA boarding schools, children were given English names, forced to attend church and convert to Christianity, forced to speak and learn English, forced to cut their hair and wear uniforms. Children were punished for speaking their native language. This was a government program to assimilate us into Western culture so that we lose our identity and connection to our tribes. When Apaches came home to the reservation, they struggled to relate to their families after being taught that it was wrong to speak their language or practice their ceremonies. Many were marked by trauma. Thankfully, the boarding schools have all but disappeared. Through the efforts of many, many tribal leaders, tribes have taken over the system of education. We have done so out of necessity – for self-determination and self-governance. We now run our schools. Teachers are tribal members. Superintendents are tribal members. Apache language is taught in our schools. Even our college right here – the San Carlos Apache College, the 33rd tribal college in the United States. Western Education no longer oppresses us, it has become our tool, our means to an end. The previous boarding school system was devastating. However, instead of assimilating, we have strengthened our ties to our language, our Reservation, our tribal identity, our culture, our history, and our traditions.