Articles
Decolonization of Language Policy in Arctic Canada – Letter to the Editor
Colonialism in northern Canada is not a historical artefact because the bureaucratic structure of colonial government persists. If parts of southern Canada are discussing post-colonial frameworks, then we must consider that the northernmost Territory of Nunavut (“our land”) is in a syn-colonial condition and the present trend is for it to continue. Canada endorsed the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous People in 2016 and enacted it in 2021. If Canada is truly committed to a philosophy of reconciliation and decolonization, then it will make policy changes in the north that follow a guiding principle of self-determination for indigenous people. The simplest changes would be 1) to deliver more Inuktut instruction in schools and 2) to add knowledge…
Revitalizing Stewardship and Use of Tribal Traditional Territories: Options for Improving California Policy and Law in State-Managed Lands and Waters
California dispossessed Indian tribes of millions of acres in the decades following the State’s founding. Loss of tribal land and waters largely cut off Indian tribes from ancestral territories on which they depend for food, culture and identity. Tribal arguments for rights to these areas outside their reservations have some support in the law, but solutions are better produced in a collaborative process between sovereign Indian tribes and State resource agencies. Recent changes in State policy that seek to remedy historic injustices and respect tribal sovereignty provide opportunities for joint efforts. The authors propose seven options for discussion among Indian tribes and State agencies. The goal is to catalyze a process by which the tribes and agencies may…
Eagle Permits, RFRA, and American Indian Religious Freedom: Legal Avenues for First Amendment Protection
Built on a colonial discourse of justifiable Christian conquest, United States federal Indian law and policies have specifically targeted American Indian religious practices as a way to assimilate American Indians into the dominant colonizing culture and to undermine tribal sovereignty. Federal policies throughout colonization and into the present have drastically swung between denying American Indian religious practice and allowing for it under federal control, creating a confusing string of conflicting precedent. Although the worst of these practices has largely been abandoned, the paternalism of the United States government continues today with the creation and oversight of a permit system, which regulates the use and possession of bald and golden…
E PULE KĀKOU! (LET US PRAY!): Constitutionality and Practicability of Public School Sponsored Native Hawaiian Prayers
This article argues that the state of Hawai’i should encourage and provide legislative protection for practicing pule in K-12 public schools on a regular basis for cultural and educational purposes. The Hawai’i state constitution should have specific provisions regarding the time, venue, and practitioners of pule. Hawai’i state laws should provide greater protection of Native Hawaiian religious rights than federal laws. Part II introduces the educational and cultural values of pule, its connection with ‘Ōlelo Hawai’i(Native Hawaiian language) from the past to present, and pule practices as educational programs at public schools can contribute to the Third Hawaiian Renaissance. Part III reviews the current Hawai’i state law protection of pule in public schools under…
The United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples in Defense of the Indian Child Welfare Act
The Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) is a law that was passed to address the removal crisis of American Indians from their community to non-Indian families. The removal crisis is a result of centuries of detrimental federal government policies such as assimilation laws and boarding schools and campaigns to “adopt out” Indian children. ICWA has been challenged over the years in court but has prevailed. Although child removal has decreased slightly since its adoption, the data on removal are still shocking and must be addressed. The most recent development in the fight over ICWA is Brackeen v. Bernhardt where a non-Indian adoptive couple is suing over ICWA’s constitutionality under the equal protection clause and Tenth Amendment. Because of the confusion between…
Turtle Talk 