Sports and Athletics
From NativeWiki
John Bloom’s, To Show What an Indian Can Do, is a sports narrative that explores the history of Native American sports programs in federally operated Carlisle and Haskell boarding schools. It investigates the United States government’s education policy, set up to impose mainstream American culture on Native American children. Conflicting perspectives between administrators and students regarding assimilation is explained through first hand experience. The book also discusses ideas about female students and their controversial roles regarding sport and physical activity. Various first-person recollections of former students who attended these boarding schools emphasize the importance of Native American sports teams and individual success. Otherwise lacking in boarding schools, these accomplishments created a new sense of community, and revitalized cultural beliefs, and pride while ultimately changing the country's attitudes toward Native Americans.
