AZ SCM1004

Urges the U.S. Department of the Interior to investigate all 51 former and current Indian boarding schools located in Arizona.

Requests use of ground penetrating radar to search for unmarked graves at these schools and return any discovered remains to families or tribes for repatriation and burial.

References the Indian Civilization Act of 1819 and subsequent federal policies that removed hundreds of thousands of Native American children from 1869 through the 1960s for forced assimilation in boarding schools.

Notes that children experienced physical, sexual, cultural and spiritual abuse for speaking native languages and engaging in traditional practices, with many never returning home.

Acknowledges Arizona had the second highest number of Indian boarding schools nationally with 51 of 367 total U.S. schools, with dozens remaining open as of 2020.