Discusses the history, purposes, and provisions of the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA); recent high-profile transracial adoption cases; the debate over whether ICWA purposes have been realized; the proposed Adoption Promotion and Stability Act, which would severely limit application of ICWA to adoption cases; and proposed compromise amendments to…

The decade of the 1970s witnessed major achievement by Native Americans in the area of self-determination of the structure and content of their education system. (Author)

Discusses issues related to cultural survival and the 1990 passage of the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA). Suggests that cultural protection can make Native Americans appear secretive about their cultures. Projects that the number of tribal museums will increase due to NAGPRA. (AJL)

The Indian Child Welfare Act places responsibility for implementing Indian welfare legislation onto Indian tribes themselves, rather than on the government bureaucracy. Successful implementation poses challenges concerning the establishment of comprehensive tribal courts, in view of sociocultural and environmental factors that have affected the…

The Council of Energy Resource Tribes (CERT) and 25 coal-owning tribes recently completed a study of issues associated with control and reclamation of surface mining. Article presents their seven recommendations for legislation enabling tribes to have greater control over the regulation and reclamation of strip mining on their lands. (Author/DS)

Examines development of federal-Indian trust relationship and separate "government-government" relationship between U.S. government and federally recognized tribes. Analyzes inconsistencies produced by government's administration of two relationships. Sees trust relationship (guardianship doctrine) as one aspect of government-government…

Criticizes legislation sponsored by Senator Slade Gorton and other Republican members of Congress that would weaken tribal sovereignty and the federal government's trust responsibility. Republican proposals have included limiting tribal jurisdiction of reservation lands, drastically reducing Bureau of Indian Affairs spending, taxing the Indian…

The Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 (PRWORA) replaced Aid to Families with Dependent Children with Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF), which establishes work-focused, time-limited welfare benefits. TANF permits tribes to receive funds directly from the federal government to administer their own…

This chapter discusses the history and nature of Indian control of Indian education since the 1960s and its implications for the future. Local or tribal control of education is a basic principle inherent in the sovereignty status of American Indian tribes, and is also essential to reclaim and strengthen Native languages and cultures that were long…

Legal, philosophical, legislative, historical, and international aspects of the issue of Indian tribal sovereignty and treaty rights are presented in six articles based on transcripted proceedings of a forum held at San Diego State University April 12-14, 1978. In the introduction, Sam Deloria examines various definitions of tribal sovereignty. In…

This article examines foster care and adoption, health, and education of poor Indian children. The paper first explains the Indian Child Welfare Act of 1978, gives a historical overview of injustices done to American Indians, and reviews recent court rulings and federal and state action in regard to the Indian Child Welfare Act. The paper then has…

The paper outlines the history of the long-standing dispute over land in Arizona co-owned by the Navajo and Hopi. It details the confusing history and predicted effects of related governmental action and legislation and describes the position of important personalities on all sides of the issue. (SB)

The cornerstones of the Indian perspective on their relationship to American government and society lie in the fact that the Indians are the aboriginal owners of the New World and that their formal association with the U.S. is based on formal treaties. Indian tribes consider themselves as separate and sovereign nations. In early American history,…

Keynote addresses and panel sessions at a conference examining Indian history in the 50 years since the passage of the Indian Reorganization Act (IRA) are collected in this volume. Part One discusses the Indian New Deal and federal Indian policy from 1933-1945. Part Two deals with 1945-1960 and the federal policy of terminating tribal status. Part…

Federal awareness that Indians existed as self-governing, political entities gave rise to congressional action during the 1970s that produced significant Indian rights legislation. Article discusses the Congressional Indian legislation enacted during the past decade. (DS)