DUBAI: At least $1.6 million in federal funds for projects meant to capture and digitize stories of the systemic abuse of generations of Indigenous children in boarding schools at the hands of the US government have been slashed due to federal funding cuts under President Donald Trump’s administration.
The cuts are just a fraction of the grants canceled by the National Endowment for the Humanities in recent weeks as part of the Trump administration’s deep cost-cutting effort across the federal government. But coming on the heels of a major federal boarding school investigation by the previous administration and an apology by then-President Joe Biden, they illustrate a seismic shift.
“If we’re looking to ‘Make America Great Again,’ then I think it should start with the truth about the true American history,” said Deborah Parker, CEO of the National Native American Boarding School Healing Coalition.
The coalition lost more than $282,000 as a result of the cuts, halting its work to digitize more than 100,000 pages of boarding school records for its database. Parker, a citizen of the Tulalip Tribes in Washington state, said Native Americans nationwide depend on the site to find loved ones who were taken or sent to these boarding schools.
Searching that database last year, Roberta “Birdie” Sam, a member of Tlingit & Haida, was able to confirm that her grandmother had been at a boarding school in Alaska. She also discovered that around a dozen cousins, aunts and uncles had also been at a boarding school in Oregon, including one who died there. She said the knowledge has helped her with healing.
“I understand why our relationship has been the way it has been. And that’s been a great relief for myself,” she said. “I’ve spent a lot of years very disconnected from my family, wondering what happened. And now I know — some of it anyways.”
An April 2 letter to the healing coalition that was signed by Michael McDonald, acting chairman of the National Endowment for the Humanities, says the “grant no longer effectuates the agency’s needs and priorities.”
The Associated Press left messages by phone and email for the National Endowment for the Humanities. White House officials and the Office of Management and Budget also did not respond Friday to an email requesting comment.
Indigenous children were sent to boarding schools. For 150 years the US removed Indigenous children from their homes and sent them away to the schools, where they were stripped of their cultures, histories and religions, and beaten for speaking their native languages.
At least 973 Native American children died at government-funded boarding schools, according to an Interior Department investigation launched by former Interior Secretary Deb Haaland. Both the report and independent researchers say the actual number was much higher.
The forced assimilation policy officially ended with the enactment of the Indian Child Welfare Act in 1978. But the government never fully investigated the boarding school system until the Biden administration.
In October, Biden apologized for the government’s creation of the schools and the policies that supported them.
Haaland, a Laguna Pueblo citizen who’s running for governor in New Mexico, described the recent cuts as the latest step in the Trump administration’s “pattern of hiding the full story of our country.” But she said they can’t erase the extensive work already done.
“They cannot undo the healing communities felt as they told their stories at our events to hear from survivors and descendants,” she said in a statement. “They cannot undo the investigation that brings this dark chapter of our history to light. They cannot undo the relief Native people felt when President Biden apologized on behalf of the United States.”
Boarding school research programs are feeling the strain. Among the grants terminated earlier this month was $30,000 for a project between the Koahnic Broadcast Corporation and Alaska Native Heritage Center to record and broadcast oral histories of elders in Alaska. Koahnic received an identical letter from McDonald.
Benjamin Jacuk, the Alaska Native Heritage Center’s director of Indigenous research, said the news came around the same time they lost about $100,000 through a Institute of Museum and Library Services grant for curating a boarding school exhibit.
“This is a story that for all of us, we weren’t able to really hear because it was so painful or for multitudes of reasons,” said Jacuk, a citizen of Kenaitze Indian Tribe. “And so it’s really important right now to be able to record these stories that our elders at this point are really opening up to being able to tell.”
Former Assistant Secretary of Indian Affairs Bryan Newland described the cuts as frustrating, especially given the size of the grants.
“It’s not even a drop in the ocean when it comes to the federal budget,” said Newland, a citizen of the Bay Mills Indian Community (Ojibwe). “And so it’s hard to argue that this is something that’s really promoting government efficiency or saving taxpayer funds.”
In April 2024, the National Endowment for the Humanities announced that it was awarding $411,000 to more than a dozen tribal nations and organizations working to illustrate the impact of these boarding schools. More than half of those awards have since been terminated. The grant cuts were documented by the non-profit organization National Humanities Alliance.
John Campbell, a member of Tlingit and the Tulalip Tribes, said the coalition’s database helped him better understand his parents, who were both boarding school survivors and “passed on that tradition of being traumatized.”
When he was growing up, his mother used to put soap in his mouth when he said a bad word. He said he learned through the site that she experienced that punishment beginning when she was 6-years-old in a boarding school in Washington state when she would speak her language. “She didn’t talk about it that much,” he said. “She didn’t want to talk about it either. It was too traumatic.”
Trump administration makes major cuts to Native American boarding school research projects
https://arab.news/cfnf2
Trump administration makes major cuts to Native American boarding school research projects
- The cuts are just a fraction of the grants canceled by the National Endowment for the Humanities in recent weeks as part of the Republican administration’s deep cost-cutting effort across the federal
- At least $1.6 million in federal funds for projects meant to capture and digitize stories of the systemic abuse of generations of Indigenous children in boarding schools
Trump says urged Apple to manufacture in US not India
- Apple CEO said in May majority of iPhones in sold in US would have India as country of origin
- India, hit by US tariffs, has threatened to retaliate response to increased duties on steel, aluminum
DOHA: US President Donald Trump said Thursday he urged Apple to manufacture its products in the United States instead of India, where the US tech giant has said it would be shifting production after US tariffs on China.
“I had a little problem with Tim Cook,” Trump said, referring to Apple’s CEO, during a multi-day tour of the Gulf. “I said, Tim, we treated you really good. We put up with all the plants that you built in China for years now.”
The president said he told Cook: “We’re not interested in you building in India... we want you to build here and they’re going to be upping their production in the United States.”
On Monday, the US and China announced an agreement to suspend tit-for-tat tariffs for 90 days, de-escalating a trade war that has spooked financial markets and raised fears of a global economic downturn.
Prior to the agreement between Beijing and Washington, Cook said Apple was “not able to precisely estimate the impact of tariffs.”
When presenting the tech company’s first-quarter profits in early May, Cook said he expected “a majority of iPhones sold in the US will have India as their country of origin.”
He warned of the uncertain impact of the 145 percent US tariffs on products from China — the company’s long-time manufacturing hub — despite a temporary reprieve for high-end tech goods such as smartphones and computers.
Although completed smartphones are exempted from Trump’s tariffs for now, not all components that go into Apple devices are spared.
Apple expects US tariffs to cost $900 million in the current quarter, even though their impact was “limited” at the start of this year, according to Cook.
India, also hit by US tariffs, threatened on Tuesday to take retaliatory measures in response to the increased duties on steel and aluminum.
India’s Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar said on Thursday trade negotiations between India and the United States are ongoing, and any agreement should be mutually beneficial.
Apple announced in February it would invest more than $500 billion in the United States over the next four years and promised to hire 20,000 people in the country.
“Apple’s already in for 500 billion but they’re going to be upping their production, so it’ll be great,” Trump said in Qatar.
That ‘tourist’ in the forest might be a Russian spy, Latvia warns
- MIDD offered advice on how to identify possible reconnaissance and sabotage operatives
- It also warned that Russian saboteurs might also attempt to incite unrest or assassinate “socially significant individuals”
WARSAW: They might look like lost tourists — unkempt and overloaded with gear — or hikers with military haircuts, survival gear and no clue how to behave in the woods.
But Latvia’s intelligence agency said Thursday that they might actually be Russian saboteurs and spies.
In its annual report, Latvia’s Defense Intelligence and Security Service, known by Latvian acronym MIDD, offered advice on how to identify possible reconnaissance and sabotage operatives.
It’s an increasingly relevant concern given regional tensions and a string of arson and other acts of sabotage, which Western governments blame on Russia — allegations that Moscow has repeatedly denied.
The list of telltale signs is striking: slovenly appearance, mismatched military or sportswear, and a knack for asking locals suspicious questions. According to the security service, such groups may linger near military or critical infrastructure sites, pose as humanitarian workers or stay in remote areas without showing any interest in nature.
Some may carry specialized medical kits, maps or radios — items better suited for clandestine operations than camping trips.
The Latvian guidance comes as countries across the region, including new NATO members Sweden and Finland, have been issuing booklets with advice on how to survive war or a natural disaster.
Nearby Poland is now preparing its guidelines, while Norway recently published a book with advice on how to survive for one week.
“We live in an increasingly turbulent world,” it says. “Even though in Norway most things generally function as they normally would, we must remain aware that extreme weather, pandemics, accidents, sabotage — and in the worst case acts of war — can impact us.”
MIDD, one of Latvia’s three security services, alongside the State Security Service and the Constitution Protection Bureau, warned that Russian saboteurs might also attempt to incite unrest or assassinate “socially significant individuals.”
Their activities might also be focused on “studying the position of the target country’s society and inciting unrest directed against the existing government.”
The agency cautioned that appearances can deceive.
“The Ukrainian experience shows that Russian special services are able to adapt,” the report says. Not all spies will fit the mold, and suspicions must be judged in context.
It also warns that if a sabotage group is spotted, leave the James Bond heroics to the professionals.
“If you do think you might have spotted a sabotage group on Latvian soil, MIDD does not recommend tackling them yourself,” it said. “Instead report your suspicions to the State Police, special services, or the nearest armed forces unit.”
Uganda army chief threatens voters who don't choose his father
- The east African country is due to hold a general election in January
- The commander of the army also said that all serving women would from now on march in skirts
Nairobi: The Ugandan president’s son said Thursday that any citizen who voted against his father in upcoming polls would be deported, while also banning women in the army from wearing trousers.
The east African country is due to hold a general election in January, and there has been a mounting crackdown on the opposition in recent months.
General Muhoozi Kainerugaba, the son and heir-apparent of long-ruling President Yoweri Museveni, is infamous for his colorful tweets that touch on everything from military matters to his social life.
On Thursday, he posted on X that individuals who “who do not support Mzee wholeheartedly better be very careful!,” using an honorific for his father.
“We will deport all the traitors in public view!!,” he added.
Earlier this month Kainerugaba claimed to have captured and tortured opposition leader Bobi Wine’s bodyguard Eddie Mutwe, who later appeared in court showing signs of torture, according to Justice Minister Norbert Mao.
In another post, Kainerugaba wrote that he took “FULL responsibility” for the actions of his soldiers, “including the long overdue beating of Eddie Mutwe.”
He added: “That was an appetizer!“
Rounding out his string of posts, the commander of the army also said that all serving women would from now on march in skirts.
“Trousers are for men not for women. Anyone who forces our sisters to put on trousers on parade again will have a very bad day,” he explained.
Only a fraction of the Ugandan People’s Defense Force (UPDF) is made up of women, and they are issued the same daily uniform as their male counterparts. They are permitted to wear skirts on formal occasions, according to local media.
UK PM says in talks over third country ‘return hubs’ for migrants
- “We are in talks with a number of countries about return hubs,” Starmer told a joint news conference with his newly reelected Albanian counterpart Edi Rama
- Starmer declined to explain how the hubs would work in practice or say with which countries he was in talks
TIRANA: The UK is in talks with different countries about setting up “return hubs” for failed asylum seekers, Prime Minister Keir Starmer said Thursday on a visit to Albania seeking to bring down immigration.
The UK leader is under pressure to reduce immigration and cut the number of irregular migrants arriving on UK shores, many in small boats, amid the rising popularity of the hard-right, anti-immigrant Reform Party.
“We are in talks with a number of countries about return hubs,” Starmer told a joint news conference with his newly reelected Albanian counterpart Edi Rama.
Starmer declined to explain how the hubs would work in practice or say with which countries he was in talks.
But he said his new Labour government had been left a “mess” by the previous Conservative leadership, which he said had failed to process asylum claims.
The prime minister’s official spokesman said: “This will basically apply to people who have exhausted all legal routes to remain in the UK but are attempting to stall, using various tactics — whether it’s losing their paperwork or using other tactics to frustrate their removal.”
Last July, Starmer’s Labour government abandoned a scheme put in place by the Conservatives to deport undocumented migrants to Rwanda.
Rama said hosting a new UK return hub in Albania was not on the table, adding that an earlier deal with Italy had been a “one-off.”
The scheme by Italy for Italian-run facilities to process migrants to be based in Albania is currently bogged down in the courts.
“The model that we’ve brought to Albania in cooperation with Italy ... is a model that takes its time to be tested,” said Rama.
“If it works, it can be replicated, but not in Albania, in other countries of the region.”
In March, the European Commission unveiled a planned reform of the 27-nation bloc’s return system, opening the way for member states to set up migrant return centers outside the EU.
Earlier this week Starmer unveiled tough new immigration policies that included cutting the number of overseas care workers, doubling the length of time before migrants can qualify for settlement in the country and new powers to deport foreign criminals.
The announcement was widely seen as an attempt to fend off rising support for anti-immigrant firebrand Nigel Farage’s hard-right Reform UK party.
Labour vowed in its general election manifesto last year to significantly reduce net migration, which stood at 728,000 in the 12 months to last June.
It peaked at 906,000 in 2023 after averaging 200,000 for most of the 2010s.
In addition to high levels of legal migration, the UK has also seen unprecedented numbers of irregular migrants. And the numbers of asylum seekers has tripled to 84,200 in 2024, compared to 27,500 between 2010 and 2011.
More than 12,500 migrants have made the perilous Channel crossing so far this year, according to an AFP tally based on figures from the UK’s interior ministry.
Under a deal between the previous Conservative government and Tirana in 2022, Albanians arriving in the UK on small boats across the Channel can be sent back immediately.
Starmer’s Downing Street office said in a statement there had been a 95 percent reduction in Albanian small boat arrivals in the last three years, while the number of Albanians returned to the country had doubled in the past two years.
Some 5,294 Albanians were sent back in 2024, more than double the 2,035 Albanian nationals returned two years earlier.
Starmer also announced an expansion of the Joint Migration Taskforce in the Western Balkans, set up with Albania and Kosovo, to include North Macedonia and Montenegro.
The expansion would allow greater intelligence sharing to intercept smuggling gangs and deploy UK funded drones to snare gangsters funnelling migrants through the Western Balkans corridor to the UK.
Rama has vowed to integrate the Balkan nation into the European Union, and was also set to meet EU chiefs Ursula von der Leyen and Antonio Costa on Thursday in Tirana.
Spain busts lucrative Chinese-Arab money laundering ring
- Police said the investigation began after the dismantling of a migrant-trafficking gang
- Police arrested 17 mostly Chinese and Syrian suspects in January
MADRID: Spanish police on Thursday said they had broken up a Chinese-Arab ring that laundered $21 million of proceeds from people and drug trafficking through the informal “hawala” money transfer system.
Police said the investigation began after the dismantling of a migrant-trafficking gang transporting mostly Syrians between Algeria and Spain, which led to a probe into their finances.
An Arab branch of the network “took charge of the reception of money in any part of the world,” while a separate Chinese branch supplied the cash in Spain in exchange for cryptocurrencies.
Police arrested 17 mostly Chinese and Syrian suspects in January — 15 in Spain, one in Austria and another in Belgium — said EU law enforcement agency Europol which supported the operation.
The network’s Belgium-based leader had “Jordanian-Palestinian nationality” and facilitated contacts within Spain, police chief inspector Encarna Ortega told a press conference in Madrid.
He is suspected of coordinating a litany of operations, mainly laundering money from the proceeds of trafficking humans and drugs, she added.
In total, the suspects moved $21 million between June 2022 and September 2024, Spanish police said.
Authorities seized from them 205,000 euros ($229,000) in cash, more than 183,000 euros in cryptocurrency, 18 vehicles, real estate property and illegal cigars worth more than 600,000 euros destined for sale in China.
Hawala is traditional system of moving money between countries based on confidence and a network of intermediaries with minimal paperwork which is popular in parts of Asia and Africa.
The method is especially common among migrant workers who send remittances to their families, but it has also been linked with financing terrorism.
