An Era of Removal

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No American Indian family remains untouched by government policies of forced family separation.  Prior to the Adoption Era (1940-1978) the progressive approach to America’s “Indian problem” was to “Kill the Indian and save the man” by shipping Native youth and toddlers to an estimated 500 federally-funded conversion schools and religious institutions (Boarding School Era: 1879-1978).  This collective era of removal effectively displaced 25-35% of Native American youth from tribal communities nationwide by the late 1960s.  

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