First America

The fight against the Indian Child Welfare Act is much bigger than a few custody cases, or even the entire adoption industry. We follow the money, and our investigation leads us to a powerful group of corporate lawyers and one of the biggest law firms in the country. 

Show Notes

• This Land website https://crooked.com/podcast-series/this-land/
• Resources For Survivors https://crooked.com/resources-for-survivors/
• Resources For Journalists & Investigators https://crooked.com/resources-for-journalists-investigators/
• Have a tip? Share it with our reporting team via SecureDrop https://criticalfrequency.org/securedrop/
• Mashpee Wampanoag face double crisis: COVID-19 and feds https://indiancountrytoday.com/news/mashpee-wampanoag-face-double-crisis-covid-19-and-feds
• Interior takes reservation away from Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe https://indiancountrytoday.com/news/interior-takes-reservation-away-from-mashpee-wampanoag-tribe
• Mashpee Wampanoag ruling a 'win for all of Indian Country' https://indiancountrytoday.com/news/mashpee-wampanoag-ruling-a-win-for-all-of-indian-country
• The Fight for Baby Veronica, Part 1 https://indiancountrytoday.com/archive/the-fight-for-baby-veronica-part-1
• The Fight for Baby Veronica, Part 2 https://indiancountrytoday.com/archive/the-fight-for-baby-veronica-part-2
• The Fight for Baby Veronica, Part 3 https://indiancountrytoday.com/archive/the-fight-for-baby-veronica-part-3
• The Fight for Baby Veronica, Part 4 https://indiancountrytoday.com/archive/the-fight-for-baby-veronica-part-4
• The Fight for Baby Veronica, Part 5 https://indiancountrytoday.com/archive/the-fight-for-baby-veronica-part-5
• Supreme Court Takes on Indian Child Welfare Act in Baby Veronica Case https://indiancountrytoday.com/archive/supreme-court-takes-on-indian-child-welfare-act-in-baby-veronica-case

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The private adoption industry has been fighting against the Indian Child Welfare Act the longest. We learn why by following one couple’s journey to adopt and their mixed feelings about the process.

Show Notes

• This Land website https://crooked.com/podcast-series/this-land/
• Resources For Survivors https://crooked.com/resources-for-survivors/
• Resources For Journalists & Investigators https://crooked.com/resources-for-journalists-investigators/
• Have a tip? Share it with our reporting team via SecureDrop https://criticalfrequency.org/securedrop/
• Blood Memory documentary https://www.bloodmemorydoc.com/

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Brackeens aren’t the only ones suing to strike down the Indian Child Welfare Act. So are Danielle and Jason Clifford, a foster couple from Minnesota.

Show Notes

• This Land website https://crooked.com/podcast-series/this-land/
• Resources For Survivors https://crooked.com/resources-for-survivors/
• Resources For Journalists & Investigators https://crooked.com/resources-for-journalists-investigators/
• Have a tip? Share it with our reporting team via SecureDrop https://criticalfrequency.org/securedrop/

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Brackeens' case would have been a normal adoption dispute, but then one of the most powerful corporate law firms in the United States took it on and helped the couple launch a federal lawsuit.

Show Notes

• This Land website https://crooked.com/podcast-series/this-land/
• Resources For Survivors https://crooked.com/resources-for-survivors/
• Resources For Journalists & Investigators https://crooked.com/resources-for-journalists-investigators/
• Have a tip? Share it with our reporting team via SecureDrop https://criticalfrequency.org/securedrop/
• Blood Memory documentary https://www.bloodmemorydoc.com/
• “Indian Adoption Project Increases Momentum” April 18, 1967 press release from the U.S. Department of the Interior https://www.indianaffairs.gov/as-ia/opa/online-press-release/indian-adoption-project-increases-momentum

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

ALM – as referred to in court documents – is a Navajo and Cherokee toddler. When he was a baby, a white couple from the suburbs of Dallas wanted to adopt him, but a federal law said they couldn’t. So they sued.

Show Notes:

• This Land website https://crooked.com/podcast-series/this-land/
• Resources For Survivors https://crooked.com/resources-for-survivors/
• Resources For Journalists & Investigators https://crooked.com/resources-for-journalists-investigators/
• Have a tip? Share it with our reporting team via SecureDrop https://criticalfrequency.org/securedrop/
• Jennifer Brackeen’s Personal Blog https://web.archive.org/web/20201221201802/https://thebrackeens.blogspot.com/
• "An Untold Number Of Indigenous Children Disappeared At U.S. Boarding Schools. Tribal Nations Are Raising The Stakes In Search Of Answers." https://theintercept.com/2018/09/25/carlisle-indian-industrial-school-indigenous-children-disappeared/
• "My Relatives Went To A Catholic School For Native Children. It Was A Place Of Horrors" https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2021/jun/30/my-relatives-went-to-a-catholic-school-for-native-children-it-was-a-place-of-horrors
• "Indigenous Children Finally Headed Home" https://indiancountrytoday.com/news/indigenous-children-officially-headed-home
• "Indian Boarding School Investigation Faces Hurdles In Missing Records, Legal Questions" https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/indian-boarding-school-investigation-faces-hurdles-missing-records-legal-questions-n1273996
• "U.S. Boarding Schools To Be Investigated" https://indiancountrytoday.com/news/us-boarding-schools-to-be-investigated

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

ALM – as referred to in court documents – is a Navajo and Cherokee toddler. When he was a baby, a white couple from the suburbs of Dallas wanted to adopt him, but a federal law said they couldn’t. So they sued. Today, the lawsuit doesn’t just impact the future of one child, or even the future of one law. It threatens the entire legal structure defending Native American rights. 

In season 2 of This Land, host Rebecca Nagle investigates how the far right is using Native children to quietly dismantle American Indian tribes. 

Tune in beginning August 23rd.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Check out a brand new episode from our friends at Snap Judgment!

Last year, tribal government worker Cheyenne Brady was given a new job: to count everyone on her reservation. Writer Julian Brave Noisecat follows her through the ups-and-downs of the 2020 census, culminating in the first-ever Census Powwow.

To hear more incredible stories like this one, listen and subscribe to Snap Judgment wherever you get your podcasts. 

Website: https://snapjudgment.org/ 

Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/snap-judgment/id283657561 

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SnapJudgment 

Twitter: https://twitter.com/snapjudgment 

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/snapjudgmentradio/ 

The Supreme Court has ruled, delivering a historic decision on the reservation status of Eastern Oklahoma. Rebecca Nagle talks to the lawyer who argued the case at the High Court, Native law professors, scholars, and journalists to break down the significance of this decision and share what it means to the future of Muscogee (Creek) Nation and all Five Tribes.

For a transcript of this episode, please visit crooked.com/thisland.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today, the Supreme Court made a historic ruling on the reservation status of Eastern Oklahoma. Rebecca Nagle is here to break down the decision, talk through the implications, and hey, celebrate a little. Because this win -- it’s huge.

For a transcript of this episode, please visit crooked.com/thisland.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A murder case sparked an investigation into the treaty rights of five tribes. But another case -- a simple case about an adoption -- could actually dismantle America's tribes as we know them. 

For a transcript of this episode, please visit crooked.com/thisland.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.