Tribal Nations Summit Commencing

The White House Tribal Nations Summit is today and tomorrow bringing together tribal nation leaders and federal government officials.  This morning  the event was opened with remarks from Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland.  Who then participated in a panel talking about Education and  Native Languages.  She talked about how the federal government can help with language revitalization by continuing to support language teachings in schools.  Also – supporting basic infrastructure for internet connectivity on Tribal Lands that can help students access language learning. “Another thing with respect to the federal Indian boarding school initiative we recognize that one of the most horrible things to come out of those assimilation policies was a loss of language. Because they wanted us to be monolithic, they wanted to strip our children of their culture identity and language was one of the things they could take away fairly easily. But we surprised them because we’re still working hard to make sure that we do everything we can to preserve those languages” This morning there will be presentations on Mental Health, Access to Capital and Economic Development before the lunch break.  You can watch the live stream of the Summit today and tomorrow on YouTube