This weekend marks two years since the Supreme Court issued its ruling in Haaland v. Brackeen, which reaffirmed the constitutionality of ICWA, or the Indian Child Welfare Act.
I feel a deep connection to this case — and not only because I was named as the petitioner. As the Secretary of the Interior, I represented our government and its legal and moral obligation to the 574 federally recognized Native American tribes across our country.
This case was personal because I am a product of the horrific assimilation policies that ICWA was enacted to finally end. My maternal grandparents were stolen from their families when they were only eight years old and were forced to live away from their parents, culture, and communities. Many children like them never made it back home.
Over nearly 100 years, tens of thousands of Indigenous children were taken from their communities and forced into boarding schools run by religious institutions and the U.S. government. Many children were doused with DDT upon arrival, and as their coerced re-education got underway, they endured physical abuse for speaking their tribal languages or practicing their traditions.
But these brutal assimilation practices didn’t end with the closure of the Indian boarding schools – they evolved. In the 1950s and 1960s, Native children were routinely ripped away from their families, tribes, and culture by social workers and placed into non-Native homes through the adoption and foster care system. ICWA was finally passed in 1978 as a direct response to the forced separation of Native children from their families, homes, and culture.
When the Supreme Court voted 7-2 to reaffirm ICWA two years ago, it was a welcome affirmation across Indian Country of what presidents and congressional majorities on both sides of the aisle have recognized for four decades: Native families belong together.
It’s so important that we know our history, no matter how painful. I believe we must face hard truths in our pursuit of justice and progress. That’s why I’ve been traveling to every corner of our state to listen to the stories and struggles of working New Mexicans. With every conversation, I feel a renewed sense of hope. Together, we will heal our wounds and enact smart, bold policies that make life better for every family across New Mexico.
Be fierce,
Deb
