In the White Man's Image

"In the White Man's Image" is a particularly difficult episode of "American Experience" to watch. This is because it's about a well meaning but VERY misguided attempt to force the American Indians to abandon their language, culture and heritage in order to become 'good Americans'. To do this, many Indian boarding schools were created...and often hundreds or thousands of miles away from their tribes and families. In other words, it was a forced assimilation of the native children...with mostly negative results.

The story begins with a group of Indians who were to be transported to Florida to an awaiting prison. The man in charge, Captain Pratt worked with these men and saw they were wasting away or died trying to escape. So he came up with the notion of turning these men into Americans...by cutting their hair, dressing them in uniforms and making their stay like a boot camp. Following this program, Pratt went on to use what he'd learned to create an Indian school in Carlisle, Pennsylvania...and soon many more sprang up across the country....all created to help rid these children of their native roots.

This episode is filled with sad stories of folks who refused to be assimilated or who tried but ultimately found prejudices prevented them from truly being treated like American citizens. As a result, it's a very difficult episode to watch...one that makes you wonder how these children could be treated as they were. Tough to watch...but like a good history lesson, one you need to learn from and remember.

By the way, there was one odd omission to the story. When mentioning folks successes and failures at these schools, the most famous graduate of the Carlisle School was never mentioned...Jim Thorpe, the great athlete and actor. Odd.