The U.S. Supreme Court in November will hear oral arguments in a case challenging the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA).
The law was enacted in 1978 to make it more difficult to remove Indian children from their families, tribes and culture. At the time it was passed, 25 to 35% of all American Indian children were being taken from their families to be adopted, typically by non-native families, or placed in foster homes.
ICWA sought to prevent that by prioritizing relatives and other members of federally recognized tribes in child-custody proceedings.
The plaintiffs argue that the law unjustly takes race into account.
Today on All Sides with Ann Fisher, a look at the Indian Child Welfare Act.
Guests:
- Sandy White Hawk, founder and director of First Nations Repatriation Institute
- Ashley Landers, assistant professor of human development and family science at Ohio State’s College of Education and Human Ecology
- Dan Lewerenz, assistant professor of law at the University of North Dakota School of Law, and an attorney with the Native American Rights Fund
- Margaret Jacobs, history professor at the University of Nebraska
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