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On March 6, 2012, the NCAI Task Force on Violence Against Women, including board members of the National Indigenous Women’s Resource Center and attorneys for the Indian Law Resource Center, met with Senator Daniel Akaka, Chairman of the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs, to thank him for sponsoring the SAVE Native Women Act, S. 1763, and co-sponsoring the Violence Against...

WASHINGTON (Tuesday, March 20, 2012) – Bipartisan legislation to reauthorize the landmark Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) reached a critical point Tuesday, as Nevada Republican Dean Heller became the 60 th Senator to cosponsor the legislation. The Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act was introduced in November by Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) and Senator Mike Crapo (R-Idaho). “The Violence Against Women...

TAKE ACTION TO PROTECT INDIGENOUS RIGHTS LEARN MORE ABOUT THE NEED FOR AN AMERICAN DECLARATION Next week, indigenous leaders from the Americas will gather in Washington, D.C. to negotiate on key provisions of the draft American Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. The Indian Law Resource Center has supported indigenous leaders in the negotiation process for three decades. We...

Commentary by Karla E. General* The UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples presents a new opportunity and a new kind of legal authority that could help Native peoples to secure rights to sacred places, and to preserve and protect cultural, religious, and spiritual practices. The Declaration recognizes and affirms the rights of indigenous peoples to their cultural, religious...

The Indian Law Resource Center is greatly concerned about the widespread violation of indigenous rights in the Americas, making the need for a strong American Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples more pressing than ever. We strongly urge the Organization of American States (OAS) and its member states to commit to the adoption of a strong American Declaration on...

More than any other factor, the current legal framework in the United States is responsible for the longstanding poverty, political marginalization, and social ills that afflict much of Indian Country. When President Barack Obama announced the United States’ support for the UN Declaration on the Right of Indigenous Peoples in 2010, he gave Indian country the hope of real change...

Native women are raped, battered, and stalked at epidemic levels that are disproportionately higher than any other group of women in the United States. The vast majority—some 86%-- of the perpetrators of these crimes are identified as non-Indians, over whom tribes lack criminal jurisdiction under current U.S. law. Two critical bills now pending in Congress offer promise in the battle...

Why we need an American Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples This week, the Working Group in charge of drafting the American Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples will hold its 14 th negotiation session in Washington, D.C. An American Declaration is greatly needed to address the particular regional issues in the Americas that are not dealt with...