Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland issued the following statement following the Supreme Court’s 7-2 decision on Brackeen v. Haaland: “Today’s decision is a welcome affirmation across Indian Country of what presidents and congressional majorities on both sides of the aisle have recognized for the past four decades. For nearly two centuries, federal policies promoted the forced removal of Indian children from their families and communities through boarding schools, foster care, and adoption. Those policies were a targeted attack on the existence of tribes, and they inflicted trauma on children, families and communities that people continue to feel today. Congress passed the Indian Child Welfare Act in 1978 to put an end to those policies. The Act ensured that the United States’ new policy would be to meet its legal and moral obligation to protect Indian children and families, and safeguard the future of Indian tribes.” 

About the U.S. Department of the Interior 

 The Department of the Interior (DOI) conserves and manages the nation’s natural resources and cultural heritage for the benefit and enjoyment of the American people, provides scientific and other information about natural resources and natural hazards to address societal challenges and create opportunities for the American people, and honors the nation’s trust responsibilities or special commitments to American Indians, Alaska Natives, and affiliated island communities to help them prosper.