Skip to main content
LibApps staff login

American Indian Studies

This page is a starting point for all students researching American Indian issues. This guide is created by the Labriola National American Indian Data Center.

Introduction

The Indian Child Welfare Act, passed into law on November 8, 1978, established minimum federal standards for the removal of Indian children from their families and the placement of these children in foster or adoptive homes. In essence, the act restricts the placement of Indian children in non-Indian homes and gives jurisdiction to tribal courts in deciding matters of child welfare cases, even when problems occur off the reservation.

 

The law was specifically designed to end discriminatory practices of state and county welfare agencies which disregarded Indian extended family arrangements and placed large numbers of Indian children in non –Indian homes.

 

Below is a list of readings published by the National Indian Child Welfare Association. These have been cataloged to the Labriola Center, and are listed in the ASU Online Catalog. In addition, consult the Library One Search with a keyword search for “Indian Child Welfare Act,” and using the same terms, search the American Indian Index (from the Library home page, click on “Articles” and type American Indian Index). From the same point, search Ethnic Newswatch, or ERIC for additional material.

 

For general information, take a look at American Indians in the Twentieth Century on the Labriola reference shelf.

 

 

Article Databases

Recommended Books

The ASU Library acknowledges the twenty-three Native Nations that have inhabited this land for centuries. Arizona State University's four campuses are located in the Salt River Valley on ancestral territories of Indigenous peoples, including the Akimel O’odham (Pima) and Pee Posh (Maricopa) Indian Communities, whose care and keeping of these lands allows us to be here today. ASU Library acknowledges the sovereignty of these nations and seeks to foster an environment of success and possibility for Native American students and patrons. We are advocates for the incorporation of Indigenous knowledge systems and research methodologies within contemporary library practice. ASU Library welcomes members of the Akimel O’odham and Pee Posh, and all Native nations to the Library.