美国国家公共电台 NPR--Supreme Court upholds Indian Child Welfare Act, handing tribes a major victory

Supreme¹ Court upholds Indian Child Welfare Act, handing tribes a major victory

Transcript²

The court rejects all of the challenges to the Indian Child Welfare Act, "some on the merits and others for lack of standing," Justice Amy Coney Barrett wrote in her majority opinion.

LEILA FADEL, HOST:

The U.S. Supreme Court has rejected all challenges to the Indian Child Welfare Act. The justices left unresolved a key argument that challengers had raised. Nonetheless, the decision was a huge win for Native American tribes. The 7-to-2 opinion, written by Justice Amy Coney Barrett, left the statute³ entirely⁴ intact. Joining us now to discuss is NPR legal affairs correspondent Nina Totenberg. Hi, Nina.

NINA TOTENBERG, BYLINE⁵: Hi there.

FADEL: So this was an unexpected ruling. Most legal experts had expected the law to be curtailed⁶ in some way, but that's not what the court did. What did the court do?

TOTENBERG: Well, Justice Barrett wrote the majority opinion, as you said, and she said - and I'm quoting - that "the court rejects all of the challenges to the Indian Child Welfare Act, some on the merits and others for lack of standing," meaning they had no right to be in court. So the Supreme Court decided⁷ one key issue in the case, but it didn't decide the other.

FADEL: And what did the dissenters⁸ say?

TOTENBERG: No, you need to ask me about what the court actually said (laughter). What the court said is that the Indian Child Welfare Act is aimed at preventing the Native American children from being separated from their extended families and the tribes. And this all comes from the act, which was enacted⁹ a long time ago, in 1978, when Congress found that public and private agencies had taken hundreds of thousands of American Indian children from their homes, sometimes by force. And these agencies then placed the children in institutions or with families that had no tribal¹⁰ connections. And the tribes saw these actions as a threat to their very existence. Congress agreed, and in response, it passed the Indian Child Welfare Act in 1978, known as ICWA, which Justice Barrett said today is an odd-sounding name.

Among other things, ICWA implemented¹¹ a framework for foster and adoption¹² placements that were at issue in this case, and those required first preferences to be given to a member of the child's extended family, then other members of the tribe and if neither of those is available, a home with a different tribal family. But the state of Texas and several families who are adopting American Indian children challenged the law in court and contended it impermissibly intrudes¹³ on state autonomy and it enshrines an unconstitutional racial preference. So the court decided what's called the commandeering argument and said, I'm sorry to the parents. You don't win on this one because we have a long line of cases that say the federal government in the area of Indian law has complete, or plenary, power to do pretty much what it wants. So the commandeering argument was out of luck. And then they went on to the other argument, the racial preference argument, and they didn't decide it.

FADEL: And very quickly, in the few seconds we have left, what did the dissenters say now that you explained the case?

TOTENBERG: The dissenters said it is a racial preference in their view. They said that - at least they suggested that. And they also said that in their view the federal government had done something it can't do under our Constitution - that is, commandeer the state's apparatus¹⁴ and impose the federal government's desire on how it should work when it comes to family law.

FADEL: NPR legal affairs correspondent Nina Totenberg, thank you.

1 supreme   

adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的

参考例句：

• It was the supreme moment in his life.那是他一生中最重要的时刻。
• He handed up the indictment to the supreme court.他把起诉书送交最高法院。

2 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

3 statute   

n.成文法，法令，法规；章程，规则，条例

参考例句：

• Protection for the consumer is laid down by statute.保障消费者利益已在法令里作了规定。
• The next section will consider this environmental statute in detail.下一部分将详细论述环境法令的问题。

4 entirely   

ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地

参考例句：

• The fire was entirely caused by their neglect of duty. 那场火灾完全是由于他们失职而引起的。
• His life was entirely given up to the educational work. 他的一生统统献给了教育工作。

5 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

6 curtailed   

v.截断，缩短( curtail的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Spending on books has been severely curtailed. 购书开支已被大大削减。
• Their public health programme had to be severely curtailed. 他们的公共卫生计划不得不大大收缩。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

8 dissenters   

n.持异议者，持不同意见者( dissenter的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• He attacked the indulgence shown to religious dissenters. 他抨击对宗教上持不同政见者表现出的宽容。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• (The dissenters would have allowed even more leeway to the Secretary.) （持异议者还会给行政长官留有更多的余地。） 来自英汉非文学 - 行政法

9 enacted   

制定（法律），通过（法案）( enact的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• legislation enacted by parliament 由议会通过的法律
• Outside in the little lobby another scene was begin enacted. 外面的小休息室里又是另一番景象。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹

10 tribal   

adj.部族的，种族的

参考例句：

• He became skilled in several tribal lingoes.他精通几种部族的语言。
• The country was torn apart by fierce tribal hostilities.那个国家被部落间的激烈冲突弄得四分五裂。

11 implemented   

v.实现( implement的过去式和过去分词 )；执行；贯彻；使生效

参考例句：

• This agreement, if not implemented, is a mere scrap of paper. 这个协定如不执行只不过是一纸空文。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• The economy is in danger of collapse unless far-reaching reforms are implemented. 如果不实施影响深远的改革，经济就面临崩溃的危险。 来自辞典例句

12 adoption   

n.采用，采纳，通过；收养

参考例句：

• An adoption agency had sent the boys to two different families.一个收养机构把他们送给两个不同的家庭。
• The adoption of this policy would relieve them of a tremendous burden.采取这一政策会给他们解除一个巨大的负担。

13 intrudes   

v.侵入，侵扰，打扰( intrude的第三人称单数 )；把…强加于

参考例句：

• An outraged movie like Stone's intrudes upon a semipermanent mourning. 像斯通这种忿忿不平的电影侵犯到美国人近乎永恒的哀悼。 来自互联网
• He intrudes upon our hospitality. 他硬要我们款待他。 来自互联网

14 apparatus   

n.装置，器械；器具，设备

参考例句：

• The school's audio apparatus includes films and records.学校的视听设备包括放映机和录音机。
• They had a very refined apparatus.他们有一套非常精良的设备。