Native Americans, tribal leaders and other supporters of last week's decision by the U.S. Supreme Court regarding adoption say it affirms their status as a sovereign nation and having a unique cultural identity.

The court upheld the Indian Child Welfare Act in Haaland v. Brackeen. The lawsuit was brought by a Texas couple who challenged the federal law requiring Native American kids up for adoption be placed with Native families whenever possible.

Judith LeBlanc, executive director of the Native Organizers Alliance, said too often a patchwork of decisions has been allowed despite the law applying nationwide.

"The truth is that on a state level and on a local, community level -- even though that's the law of the land -- because it's a law that's not funded, sometimes it was not followed and sometimes we have to fight," LeBlanc explained.

Haaland, the first Native American to serve in a president's Cabinet, praised the decision, noting for centuries U.S. policies have inflicted trauma still felt by Native children, families and communities. In the 7-2 ruling, Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito dissented, with Alito arguing cases considered under the Indian Child Welfare Act have often omitted what is in a child's best interest.

With another case involving Native water rights yet to be decided by the high court, LeBlanc pointed out last week's victory was a small win in the larger fight to maintain tribal sovereignty and cultural continuity for generations to come.

"This decision gives us a peek into what a truly robust, multiracial, multinational democracy could look like," LeBlanc contended.

New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham agreed with the court's decision, noting the critical importance of sustaining a child's connection to their cultural identity.


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Indigenous leaders are asking California Gov. Gavin Newsom to sign a bill that would allow federally recognized tribes to sign agreements with the state to co-manage and co-govern ancestral lands and waters. Assembly Bill 1284 unanimously passed both houses of the state Legislature this week.

Scott Sullivan is vice chairman of the Tolowa Dee-ni' Nation.

"This is going to allow us to deepen our relationship on a government-to-government level, it'll give us better access to our traditional ancestral territories to improve the environment and to reconnect our people to the land," he said.

Tribes hope the bill will strengthen shared decision-making around the new Yurok-Tolowa Dee-ni' Indigenous Marine Stewardship Area - which covers the coastline and up to three miles out from the Mendocino County town of Little River up to the California-Oregon border.

Fawn Murphy, chair of the Pulikla Tribe of Yurok People, said the tribes want to promote biodiversity and reverse erosion and environmental degradation.

"As these devastating climate impacts are coming and things are changing so rapidly, we need to bring it back to what works. California tribal people have been practicing traditional ecological knowledge since time immemorial," Murphy explained.

The tribes also seek input into future offshore wind projects in the area. The bill is also intended to help California meet its goal of preserving 30 percent of the state's land and waters by 2030.


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The Department of the Interior is disbursing $7 million to offices throughout the country for Indigenous-led conservation projects.

The Indian Youth Service Corps initiates public service projects, run by Native young adults, that aim to benefit Native communities.

In South Dakota, the program is hosted through an agreement between Conservation Legacy's Ancestral Lands Program and a little-known arm of the National Park Service called the Rivers, Trails and Conservation Assistance Program.

David Thomson is the program's regional manager.

"So we provide free professional assistance for a year's time frame," said Thomson. "And we come in as planners and help those communities through that process to really get those projects off the ground."

Communities can apply for this assistance and - Thomson said - current projects include building an Indigenous outdoor classroom at a Sioux Falls elementary school, renovating a trail with the Lower Brule Sioux Tribe, and developing an outdoor recreation area in Kyle on the Pine Ridge reservation.

A second South Dakota corps member coordinates cultural events with local Tribes in Wind Cave National Park.

Much of this work, especially the outreach, is done by Indian Youth Service Corps members - who benefit from a good-paying job, typically after college, and a professional development opportunity.

Thomson said after a year of service, a unique public lands hiring authority can work toward converting corps members into permanent staff.

"We need to always be diversifying and strengthening our workforce," said Thomson, "and definitely diversifying our workforce is going to improve the National Park Service in the future."

According to the Park Service, 2.5% of its 2020 employees were Native Americans, almost twice the proportion of Native Americans in the general U.S. population.




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New research shows Indigenous youth comprise more than a third of the children in Montana's foster care system, despite making up a far smaller segment of the state's overall population.

Researchers said addressing the problem is challenging. Data from the National Center for Juvenile Justice show the number of Indigenous youth comprise 30% of the children in foster care, despite making up just 10% of the Montana population.

Deana Around Him, Indigenous children, youth and families researcher for the organization Child Trends and citizen of the Cherokee Nation, said a combination of factors is driving the disparity, but it often comes down to a lack of child oversight.

"Child neglect can lead a family to be engaged with the child welfare system and result in a child being removed from a home," Around Him explained. "We wonder if that is more of a question about the resources available to families and if the solution should be different than removal."

Around Him acknowledged solutions have been hard to achieve in Montana but researchers are exploring kinship and other family-based support systems that have shown hints of success in the past. A 10-year data analysis by the Montana Free Press showed Native children are placed in foster care at roughly five times the rate of white children.

The Juvenile Justice data showed Native American children in Montana far outpace any other racial group in the child welfare system. Around Him noted in addition to family-based solutions, making resources available to struggling families is also important so they can make what would seem like easy decisions.

"Getting a job may not be so simple as like 'yes, take the job'" Around Him asserted. "Because it offers greater income for your family but if taking that job requires you to find child care, and if there's limited child care available in the community, who are you leaving our child with?"

There has been a national effort in recent years to keep children in their home when it's safe to do so but despite those efforts, the number of Indigenous children in the Montana foster care system has continued to grow.


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