The Supreme Court says to leave ICWA alone! This morning the highest court in the land voted to preserve the system that gives preference to Native American families in foster care and adoption proceedings of Native children. The justices rejected a broad attack from some Republican-led states and white families who argued that the system is based on race. The court left in place the 1978 Indian Child Welfare Act, which was enacted to address concerns that Native children were being separated from their families and, too frequently, placed in non-Native homes. Tribal leaders have backed the law as a means of preserving their families, traditions, and cultures.
American Indians forced to attend boarding schools as children are more likely to be in poor health as adults so says a new report done by Ursula Running Bear at the University of North Dakota. Many American Indians attended compulsory boarding schools in the 1900s or have relatives who did. Running Bears family was no different. Running Bear says “American Indians are very resilient, given the harsh history we have endured”. Drawing upon the strengths of our spirituality, cultural practices, and family and community interconnections, we continue to persevere. She found that compared with the broader society – tribal communities experience higher rates of mental and physical health problems: depression, anxiety, suicide, diabetes, and cancer, to name just a few. Those are your headlines at this hour. I’m Colette Keith in the KIPI News center…
