Chester County is the ancestral home of the Lenape people, who occupied this land for thousands of years before Europeans arrived. We acknowledge, honor, and respect the past, present, and future of the diverse Indigenous peoples connected to this land, whose presence continues in the region due to their resilience in the face of colonization.

Let me be a free man, free to travel, free to stop, free to work, free to trade where I choose my own teachers, free to follow the religion of my fathers, free to think and talk and act for myself, and I will obey every law, or submit to the penalty." 

Heinmot Tooyalaket ( Chief Joseph), Nez Perce Leader 

"If the white man wants to live in peace with the Indian, he can live in peace... Treat all men alike. Give them all the same law. Give them all an even chance to live and grow. All men were made by the same Great Spirit Chief. They are all brothers.  The Earth is the mother of all people, and all  people should have equal rights upon it.  

 The act, passed in 1978, protects Native children by keeping them connected to their families.  

The Supreme Court decision on Haaland vs. Brackeen was handed down on Thursday, June 15, 2023.

In a 7-2 vote, the justices affirmed the constitutionality of the Indian Child Welfare Act and voted to leave ICWA intact. The challengers cited ICWA as “against federal authority, an infringement on state sovereignty and discrimination based on race,” and the justices wisely rejected all these claims. This is a major victory for Native American children, tribes and federal Indian law. 

US Supreme Court Reaffirms Tribal Sovereignty

Major Decision Will Help Keep Native Children and Parents Together

  The boarding school experience for Indian children began in 1860...  

 Digital Diversity Day Series - Critical Race Theory from the Lens of Indigenous & Native American