Review: The Personal and National Tragedy of American Indian Boarding Schools

Review: The Personal and National Tragedy of American Indian Boarding Schools

The stories in Mary Annette Pember’s new book, Medicine River: A Story of Survival and the Legacy of Indian Boarding Schools, are almost unbearable. They are stories of the forced assimilation of Indian children: beatings, constant belittling, sexual abuse, sickness, and suicide, all under the blessing of the Catholic Church and United States government.Yet the book is a testament to the generations of American Indians who did, indeed, bear thos…

Rix Quinn: Short story of long films

No Man’s Law: Violence and Vengeance Pt. 1 Gary Henry Mchistory24@gmail.com Wed, 05/14/2025 - 20:49 Image Judge Isaac Charles Parker Photo courtesy of the Oklahoma Historical Society Judge Isaac Charles Parker Photo courtesy of the Oklahoma Historical Society X Body In the southern reaches of Indian Territory—where the Red River bends like a crooked finger and boundary linesweredrawnnotwithink but with bullet and blood— the years between 187…

Quinn Minute - Short history of long film strips

Not long ago at a class reunion, several of us got to talking about “film strips.” If you attended elementary school during the 1950s through 1970s, you may remember these visual learning tools. Because there were so many of us, states quickly constructed schools to contain us.