The Citizen Equal Rights Foundation (“CERF”) was established by the Citizens Equal Rights Alliance (“CERA”). Both CERA and CERF are South Dakota non-profit corporations. CERA has both Indian and non-Indian members in 34 states. CERF was established to protect and support the constitutional rights of all people, to provide education and training concerning constitutional rights, and to participate in legal actions that adversely impact constitutional rights of CERA members.
CERF is primarily writing this amicus curiae brief to explain how political accountability federalism relies on the 14th Amendment applying to the United States to use the structure of the Constitution to limit the territorial war powers of the 1871 Indian policy. This amicus brief continues the analysis begun in CERF’s amicus in Oklahoma v. Castro-Huerta, Docket No. 21-429.
CERF in working with one of the attorneys of the Goldwater Institute, requested the inclusion of the anti-commandeering cause of action against the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA), 25 U.S.C. ยงยง 1901-1963. CERF and CERA developed anti-commandeering to be a new cause of action to confront the continuing use of the 1871 Indian policy as applied to all Indians still being “wards” of the United States. CERA has been involved in several custody situations involving ICW A.
All have been more complicated than regular custody cases by the inclusion of the tribal interest over the child. CERA and CERF have always argued that a child’s heritage should be a significant factor in the child’s placement.