M3 Blog Post:-Tribal Courts of New York

For this blog post, I decided to review the Tribal Courts of New York website http://www.nyfedstatetribalcourtsforum.org/about.shtml. I think that this is a credible source because there are constant conflicts between Indian Nations and governments on the federal and state levels. The idea sprung from the need to understand the rule of law amongst various Indian Tribes.  In 2003, people from all of New York State's recognized Indian Tribes and Nations came together to voice their interest in developing a federal-state-tribal court system. After several meetings in the coming months, the tribal court system became a reality. The mission statement of the New York Federal-State Tribal Court system reads:

1. To develop Educational programs for Judges and Tribal Chiefs and Indian communities;
2.  To exchange information amongst Tribes and Nations and agencies;
3. To coordinate the integration of ICWA training for childcare professionals, attorneys, judges, and law guardians;
4. To develop mechanisms for resolution of jurisdictional conflicts and inter-jurisdictional recognition of judgments;
5. To foster better cooperation and understanding among justice systems; and
6. To enhance proper ICWA enforcement (nyfedstatetribalcourtsforum.org).



For those who don't know, ICWA stands for the Indian Child Welfare Act. This law is important because it established a set of rules to protect Indian Children when they get separated from their Indian Tribes and families. There is widespread evidence that Indian children are put up for adoption more frequently than non-native children https://www.nicwa.org/about-icwa/. Despite the law being in place since 1978, there are still issues with non-compliance.

works cited:
“About the Forum.” State, http://www.nyfedstatetribalcourtsforum.org/about.shtml.
“About ICWA " NICWA.” NICWA, https://www.nicwa.org/about-icwa/.

Comments

  1. Janice VassellNovember 17, 2019 at 12:48 PM

    Thank you, for this. I never knew about the ICWA. Is it an issue of too many adoption of Native American children or that the ICWA was implemented because of too many illegal adoptions? I don't think people would have a problem with adoptions if they went through the proper channels.

    I think that a Tribal Court system is long overdue. Too many issues are brushed under the rug. This is a great way to regulate that.

    ReplyDelete

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