What is the Indian Child Welfare Act?

The Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) is an important law that protects the rights of Native American children in Washington and throughout the United States. The ICWA was put in place in 1978 to address a long history of the federal government taking Native American children away from their families and tribes and putting them in other homes and institutions. The ICWA is based on the idea that Native American children should be brought up in their own communities and with their own cultural values. Under the ICWA, any state or court must follow specific procedures in order to remove a Native American child from their family or tribe. This law gives Native American families the right to choose which family or tribe receives custody of a child. The ICWA also protects Native American children from being removed from their homes or tribes without proper justification. The ICWA states that any child-custody proceedings must take into account the “best interests of the child” as well as the “promotion of the child’s cultural heritage.” The ICWA is an important law for Native Americans living in Washington and across the United States. It ensures that Native American children are not taken away from their homes and tribes without due process and that their cultural heritage is respected and preserved.

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What is the Indian Child Welfare Act?

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