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How did Indigenous families resist the forced removal of children to boarding schools?

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A dancer in a bright pink shawl with fringe, wearing traditional regalia adorned with blue and black accents, performs at an outdoor cultural event. — Native American November is the traditional time of harvest, gathering, and celebration in Native communities.

Indigenous families and communities employed several strategies to resist the forced removal of their children to American Indian boarding schools and residential schools. Recognizing the grave dangers posed by these institutions—where many children suffered from abuse, neglect, and death—families took the following actions:

Hiding children: Parents taught their children to hide when government agents arrived to collect them for transport to schools.12
Community resistance: Some communities made collective decisions to protect their children from authorities. A notable instance occurred in 1894–95, when 19 Hopi men from Oraibi were imprisoned for refusing to surrender their children to officials.12
Escaping: Many children who were successfully taken by authorities ran away, either during the journey to the school or after their arrival. Those who escaped often undertook arduous journeys, sometimes walking hundreds of miles to return to their homes.12

Through these acts of defiance and long-term advocacy, Indigenous communities eventually secured greater control over the education of their children, leading to the establishment of tribal-administered schools.12