Indigenous families at risk in upcoming SCOTUS ruling


Native children are more likely than White children to be taken from their parents and put into foster homes. The Indian Child Welfare Act, a federal law enacted in 1978, was designed to protect indigenous youth and keep them with Indian families. In a Nov. 9 hearing, the nine Supreme Court justices questioned plaintiff attorneys about whether the law violates the constitution. Straight Arrow News contributor Adrienne Lawrence argues that the SCOTUS case, Brackeen v. Haaland, could have disastrous effects not only basic child custody but tribal sovereignty altogether.

Last week, the U.S. Supreme Court heard oral arguments challenging indigenous children rights not to be separated from their people.

Basically, a White couple in Texas want to be able to adopt an indigenous child but that whole Indian Child Welfare Act prioritizes placing a child with other indigenous families. This case, Brackeen versus Haalland, may seem like a basic child custody case, but it’s far bigger than that, and it’s also pretty heinous what’s going on.

In short, the Republicans are using this case to try to gut laws protecting tribal sovereignty. It’s really just a means of gaining access to tribal lands and resources. This attack on the Indian Child Welfare Act is all about securing a boon to the fossil fuel industry. That’s the true end goal here, but the way the GOP is going about it is equally disgusting. The Republicans are looking to erode the Indian Child Welfare Act — that’s this law put into place 44 years ago — because White people couldn’t stop stealing Native kids.

From at least 1869 and until the 1960s, hundreds of thousands of indigenous children were taken from their homes and families and placed in boarding schools operated by the government and churches. State child welfare agencies made it a practice of seizing indigenous children from their homes, forcing them to assimilate to White American culture. Indian children were put in foster care systems at far higher rates than other children, and they were rarely placed in indigenous homes. As a result of these inhumane and incredibly disturbing acts of child acts, children would be severed from their Native culture, tongue, practices.