![A photo of a smiling girl and boy](https://icwa.narf.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/shutterstock_641675449-scaled.jpg)
Stand Strong
for Native
Children
And Families
_______________
Find resources related to the welfare of our youngest tribal citizens. This website includes information for tribal nations about tribal child welfare programs, the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA), federal and state laws and regulations, Indian child welfare cases, along with our news blog, ICWA INFO, which provides the latest news for Indian child welfare practitioners.
Brackeen v. Haaland
For decades, ICWA has been recognized by child welfare experts as the gold standard in child welfare practice, and the law has helped tens of thousands of Indian children and families find fairness and healing in state child welfare systems. In the past several years, anti-tribal interests have launched a series of legal challenges against ICWA, with the goal of broadly undermining tribal sovereignty. The most prominent case and challenge to ICWA was Brackeen v. Haaland (formerly Brackeen v. Zinke and Brackeen v. Bernardt). In June 2023, the U.S. Supreme Court handed down its decision in Haaland v. Brackeen, and in a 7-2 opinion resoundingly affirmed the constitutionality of the Indian Child Welfare Act.
During the Brackeen case, there was an outpouring of support for the Indian Child Welfare Act. Find summaries of the pro-ICWA amicus briefs and links to each brief on our Brackeen v. Haaland resource page.
The Indian Child Welfare Act
The Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) is a federal law enacted in 1978 to protect the well-being and best interests of Indian children and families. It upholds family integrity and stability and keeps Indian children connected to their communities and cultures. It is widely recognized as following best practices and being the gold standard in the field of child welfare.
ICWA also reaffirms the inherent rights of tribal nations to be involved in child welfare matters involving their citizens. It ensure tribes can advocate for the best interest of their tribal members.
Because of ICWA’s strong foundation, many states have enacted similar state legislation to protect Native American families in their community.
To learn more about the details of the law and how it is applied, check out NARF’s “A Practical Guide to the Indian Child Welfare Act.”
Learn more about how we are defending the law that defends our children in our Summer/Fall 2019 issue of the NARF Legal Review.
RELATED CONTENT:
ICWA INFO: A Resource for Child Welfare Practitioners
- New Research Pushes for Equal Treatment of All Children in CPSDue to inconsistent regulations, different standards exist for Native American children and non-Native children in the CPS system. Read the full article at the Texas Scorecard website.
- Tribal representation low at first South Dakota Indian Child Welfare Advisory Council meetingThe newly created Indian Child Welfare Advisory Council held its first meeting Thursday to discuss South Dakota’s foster care process and how to improve communication and collaboration between the … Read more
- In 1985, Minnesota state legislators passed the Minnesota Indian Family Preservation ActThe state law was intended to address shortcomings in the federal Indian Child Welfare Act of 1978. Read the full article at the MinnPost website.
- Indian Child Welfare Quarterly and Annual Report and Tribal Reassumption of Jurisdiction over Child Custody Proceedings, 25 CFR 13.4. The BIA is seeking to revise the information collection conducted under 25 CFR 23, related to the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA). The BIA uses the information to … Read more
- House Members Introduce ICWA Enhancement MeasureThe “Strengthening Tribal Families Act of 2024” would require the Department of Health and Human Services to create a technical assistance plan using six metrics of data to assess … Read more
- Rodriguez v. State of Montana, June 20, 2024 (United States District Court, D. Montana.)Read the full order at the National Indian Law Library.
Get more of the latest news related to Indian child welfare →
![ICWA INFO](https://icwa.narf.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/ICWAblog-header.jpg)