Adoption Case Brings Rare Family Law Dispute To High Court

[serendipity_15]

Take the usual agony of an adoption dispute. Add in the disgraceful U.S. history of ripping Indian children from their Native American families. Mix in a dose of initial fatherly abandonment. And there you have it - a poisonous and painful legal cocktail that goes before the U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday

Comments

[gambitia]

Why does the article point out that Dusten is "2% Cherokee"? I don't believe it matter what percentage he is (genetically, I assume).

This looks like an epic clusterfuck of legal shenanigans and douchebaggery. I understand the law and the completely valid protections it was put in place to provide, but this seems like a poor application of the law. A father who abandons a child isn't going to teach the child about his culture. And even if the father wanted to keep contact, why couldn't he do that in an open adoption agreement?

[world_dancer]

Some tribes base tribal membership on blood purity (I don't know what better term to use if there is one). They usually do this when there's money at stake. The Cherokee Nation, from what I looked up earlier, doesn't happen to care.

And the only reason to mention it is to try to discredit the guy just for claiming to be Cherokee. Nevermind that his family is active in tribal culture. I'm also doubtful that's accurate, since I believe both his parents are Cherokee.

[gambitia]

That's the vibe I got from the article. "Lol he's 2% Indian! A lot of Americans are probably 2% Indian and don't prance around stealing babies because of it!"

I identify as Scandinavian, even though I'm only 50% genetically, because that's the culture that was passed down to me. If the Cherokee Nation recognizes him as a member and he recognizes as Cherokee...who the hell cares?

[thenakedcat]

"Blood quantum" is the term for a membership requirement based on percentage of ancestry, by the way.

[thenakedcat]

The issue is not so much the father keeping contact with the child as it is the tribe being able to have a say on who the child is placed with--giving Native relatives (like the biological grandmother, who is now helping to raise the child) and other tribal members first refusal before initiating the outside adoption process.