How do you make reparations for historic harm when money is off the table? To accept cash for stolen land would be to sell out in the purest sense, members of the Sioux say. They want their land – or at least a say in how it is protected.
There’s a central question at the core of every child welfare case: What is the best interest of the child? When it comes to Native adoptions, the fate of the law that set the standard for four decades now rests with the Supreme Court.
In the Navajo Nation, a connection to the land is a connection to heritage and identity – ties that were lost when the U.S. government nearly exterminated Navajo-Churro sheep in the 19th and 20th centuries. Today, churro flocks are on the rebound, signaling hope and resilience on the reservation.
A dedication to protecting the land has been a hallmark of Native American leaders – but so also have bipartisanship and pragmatism. Whichever party is in power, tribes have had to work with them. In an era of deeply divided government, those tools are needed.
What would it look like to repair a long-standing racial injustice? It’s a question roiling the U.S., and Native American tribes in Oklahoma say they got a clear example last week from the Supreme Court.