CSWE Full Circle December 2014

Volume 2014, Issue 12

Attorney General Announces ICWA Initiative

At the recently held White House Tribal Nations Conference, Attorney General Eric Holder announced that the Department of Justice (DOJ) has launched an Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) initiative to address ICWA noncompliance and halt the unnecessary and illegal removal of Indian children from their families.

The initiative reflects the recommendations the National Indian Child Welfare Association (NICWA) and other Indian organizations have long advocated and promoted through testimonials, policy briefing, and reports of prevalent noncompliance. The ICWA initiative will involve working with tribes and Indian child welfare organizations to explore training for state judges and agencies, collect data on systemic violations of the ICWA, and promote tribe’s authority to make placement decisions affecting tribal children in state-court cases.

To read Attorney General Holder’s full speech, click here.