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The U.S. government’s Indian boarding school system is the focus of legislation that’s been reintroduced in the U.S. Senate.

For over a century after colonization, thousands of Native American children were taken from their families and put into government or church-run boarding schools as part of a broader effort to assimilate them to adopt Western customs. While some were taken to nearby schools in their area, others found themselves hundreds of miles away from home.

Cultural practices – from long hair to wearing traditional dress – were prohibited. The concept for many school sta...