TO: Marysville School District Families, Staff, and Community Members
FR: Marysville School District Leadership Team
June 25, 2021
Today’s report that over 750 unmarked graves of Indigenous children found near a federal boarding school in the province of Saskatchewan, Canada, is unimaginably tragic. This follows the recent uncovering of 215 graves near a boarding school in British Columbia.
These discoveries, along with the prospect of similar discoveries in the US and in Washington State as our own Secretary of the Interior, Deb Haaland, begins a search, presents us with a grim reminder of the atrocities perpetrated against Indigenous people by our own government systems.
We recognize that these discoveries have the power to re-traumatize our Indigenous students and families, as they present a stark and haunting symbol of the generational trauma that continues to impact our tribal community. We also recognize that, as a government system, we must take responsibility for committing these atrocities, and recognize the work that must be done to heal a community that we so badly damaged.
This communication serves notice that we, members of the Marysville School District, stand in support of the Tulalip Tribes and the broader Indigenous community during this time of great sadness, and we affirm our commitment to provide safe and welcoming learning spaces for our Indigenous students and families.