Had the biological mother and/or adoption agency followed the ICWA as it was supposed to be executed, there would not be a case/trump card.
Yeah, definitely this.
This case bothers me a lot, since it seems like it is just giving clearance to adoption agencies to ignore the ICWA even more than they already do all the time. (And it also doesn't really matter if the biological mother told them the girl's father was Native American or not, because it is supposed to be the responsibility of the agency to establish that a child is NOT Native American before proceeding.)
"Had the biological mother and/or adoption agency followed the ICWA as it was supposed to be executed, there would not be a case/trump card."
This.
I'm really surprised by the court's decision.(Although perhaps I shouldn't be with this makeup of the court). IIRC there were a lot of shady goings on in terms of how this adoption went about on the part of the bio mom and the adoptive parents (who btw were never even granted the adoption until this ruling).
I think a reasonable discussion could be had (in the courts or otherwise) about what the scope of the ICWA should be, but the fact that there seemed to be a concerted effort to undermine the ICWA -- not simply "interpreting it differently" -- should trump that imo.
This part of the article is really bugging me. It completely ignores that there is very good reason that him being Native American matters, and that we have the Indian Child Welfare Act that sets rules specifically for children who are Native American. The fact is discriminatory practices if taking Native American children from their families and their culture and placing them with white families where they are raised without a connection to their Native culture still happen. It's cultural genocide and we need laws, and enforcement of such laws, that work to stop it.
"If this were possible, many prospective adoptive parents would surely pause before adopting any child who might possibly qualify as an Indian under the ICWA."
Which isn't really a bad thing. It beats the manipulative practices some couples go through in securing a newborn because they just have to have one.
i'm so conflicted on this. it had to end in pain for one party or another. but in the end i'm going to come down on the side of the adoptive family- the child has been with them since birth, and rupturing that family is one of the worst things that could happen. the adoption process is a rupture in itself and it takes time for a child to assimilate to/feel secure in a new family. An adoptive family losing their child (or, in the child's view, rejecting her or 'sending her back') is probably the single greatest cause of anxiety in adoptees.
yes, the agency and the parents should have followed ICWA guidelines to ensure that everything was above-board. (This didn't happen in my own adoption- i'm 1/4 Potowotami, but thankfully my own bio mother didn't get as far as the court system when she tried to get me back. I don't think she knew about the ICWA.) And i do think the adoptive family have a responsibility to the child in terms of raising her to know and understand her heritage.
I feel the same way. I am angry that yet another Native American child has been taken away from her tribe/people and given to non-Native parents. I'm angry that the ICWA was circumnavigated and fearful that this will be one more building block it trying to make it obsolete.
But i also cannot imagine how terrified and heartbroken this child would be if she were removed from the only family and home she's ever known and given to a total stranger.
It's a totally fucked up situation. I only hope they have the sense and common decency to teach her something about her heritage, or allow her extended Native family to visit, etc.
A single picture of her complacently being read a book is hardly evidence for an evaluation on how she is feeling about the entire situation. A possible moment of emotional reprieve does not make up the larger picture.
I'm team ICWA, but a picture is hardly substantial to say how she is feeling about this.
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Yeah, definitely this.
This case bothers me a lot, since it seems like it is just giving clearance to adoption agencies to ignore the ICWA even more than they already do all the time. (And it also doesn't really matter if the biological mother told them the girl's father was Native American or not, because it is supposed to be the responsibility of the agency to establish that a child is NOT Native American before proceeding.)
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This.
I'm really surprised by the court's decision.(Although perhaps I shouldn't be with this makeup of the court). IIRC there were a lot of shady goings on in terms of how this adoption went about on the part of the bio mom and the adoptive parents (who btw were never even granted the adoption until this ruling).
I think a reasonable discussion could be had (in the courts or otherwise) about what the scope of the ICWA should be, but the fact that there seemed to be a concerted effort to undermine the ICWA -- not simply "interpreting it differently" -- should trump that imo.
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This part of the article is really bugging me. It completely ignores that there is very good reason that him being Native American matters, and that we have the Indian Child Welfare Act that sets rules specifically for children who are Native American. The fact is discriminatory practices if taking Native American children from their families and their culture and placing them with white families where they are raised without a connection to their Native culture still happen. It's cultural genocide and we need laws, and enforcement of such laws, that work to stop it.
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The line is thrown in there with no context and almost reads like some "reverse racism" nonsense.
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Which isn't really a bad thing. It beats the manipulative practices some couples go through in securing a newborn because they just have to have one.
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yes, the agency and the parents should have followed ICWA guidelines to ensure that everything was above-board. (This didn't happen in my own adoption- i'm 1/4 Potowotami, but thankfully my own bio mother didn't get as far as the court system when she tried to get me back. I don't think she knew about the ICWA.) And i do think the adoptive family have a responsibility to the child in terms of raising her to know and understand her heritage.
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But i also cannot imagine how terrified and heartbroken this child would be if she were removed from the only family and home she's ever known and given to a total stranger.
It's a totally fucked up situation. I only hope they have the sense and common decency to teach her something about her heritage, or allow her extended Native family to visit, etc.
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I'm team ICWA, but a picture is hardly substantial to say how she is feeling about this.
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