Foster parents Rusty and Summer Page vowed to get the girl back, saying they love their daughter and have . Lexi is 1.5% Choctaw, Fox 11 reported. The History of Choctaw tribe was reported to start in the Mississippi and in some areas of Alabama. you are agreeing to our, One month free trial to theMonitorDaily, How these HBCU presidents fixed their colleges financial futures. This violated, among other principles, those of federalism: Congress thereby reduced the right of states to enforce laws on child welfare. In South Dakota, for instance, 90 percent are in non-nativehomes, and often removed from their families for questionable reasons, according to an NPR investigation. It also is a repudiation of the nations premise that rights are inherent in individuals, not groups. 'Lexi doesn't know another home. Because of the 'Indian Child Welfare Act' - a federal law passed in the 1970's aimed to . Additionally, Welfare & Institution codes require a foster child be placed with siblings when possible. (Page 2), The first trial court was wrong with how it determined good cause for deviating from ICWAs placement preferences. Lexi, whose birth family is part Choctaw,has lived with Summer and Rusty Page in their home in Santa Clarita, Calif., since she was 2 years old, but the court decided that it would be in her best interest to place her with relatives in Utah where she could be near her native American extended family. Lexi: Directed by Victoria Vertuga. A dramatic scene played out on Monday as the Pages were forced to say goodbye to Lexi. Brenda speaks Spanish, Hebrew and intermediate Arabic and is the recipient of national, state and regional awards, including a National Headliners Award and one from the Associated Press News Executives' Council. Lexis court-appointed lawyers emphasize that she will have two biological sisters nearby after the move: one of her sisters lives with the same family, and another lives a few houses away. The legacy of that system is still felt on reservations today. The tribe and parents or Indian custodian of the Indian child have an unqualified right to intervene in a case involving foster care placement or the termination of parental rights . The Indian Child Welfare Act, enacted in 1978, is meant to protect nativechildrens opportunity to grow up with their own extended family, or another Native family, to foster their sense of identity and their understanding of their culture. But 6-year-old Lexi's foster family says the application of the law in her case robs her of the 'only family that she has ever known.'. The Utah family has no Native ancestry, says Rusty Page . The very people that are supposed to be advocates for kids are hurting them.. Even though her biological parents relinquished custody years ago, her extended family in Utah has been fighting to . Because of the 'Indian Child Welfare Act' - a federal law passed in the 1970's aimed to protect the best interests of Native American children - she must live with Native American parents and will be placed with her father's relatives. Her paternal grandmother informed the court that he was . Lexi's paternal grandmother alerted the Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services that her son was a member of the Choctaw tribe, but the tribe agreed to her placement at the time. In the 19th century the growth of the European market for cotton increased the pressure for the acquisition of Choctaw land, and in 1820 they ceded 5,000,000 acres in west central Mississippi to the United States. They do not get the same best-interest-of-the-child standard that applies to all other children," the Pages' legal team said in its statement. Todays civil rights movement is so different from the 60s, Israel has angered its closest supporters. We have a mission beyond circulation, we want to bridge divides. Lexi, who spent most of her life with California foster parents, was removed from her home on Monday under a court order that concluded her native American blood requires her placement with relatives in Utah. And Lexi is part Choctaw, a federally recognized American Indian tribe, which means the Indian Child Welfare Act's placement preferences applied. In 2015, this column acquainted readers with Declan Stewart and Laurynn Whiteshield. They . Lexi was originally removed from her parents care at 17 months. Choctaw Stickball PlayerThe Choctaw Indians once lay claim to millions of acres of land and established some 50 towns in present-day Mississippi and western Alabama. As Lexi was placed in the back of a black car with government workers, her foster mother Summer Page burst from the home screaming 'I love you, Lexi'. The ICWA has insinuated into law a separate but equal test regarding Native American children in jeopardy. This gross legal error led to a substantial delay in the case & once again showed the bias for ICWA in the childrens court. 'As a matter of simple human decency, we implore the county not to prematurely take Lexi from her home,' Rusty said between sobs as he read from a statement. Earlier in the day, Rusty Page told reporters that L.A. County social workers had informed him that they intended to take Lexi the same day and that the family would comply with very heavy hearts., PHOTOS: #KeepLexiHome rally in Santa Clarita. In the mid-18th century, there were 20,000 Choctaw living in 60 or 70 settlements along the Pearl, Chickasawhay, and Pascagoula rivers. . In fact, the only surprising turn of events is the lengths the foster family has gone to, under the advice of an attorney with a long history of trying to overturn ICWA, to drag out litigation as long as possible, creating instability for the child in question., How the stories of Native American youths made Obama cry in the Oval Office. The Choctaw dialect is very similar to that of the Chickasaw, and there is evidence that they are a branch of the latter tribe. Herfathers reunification attempt failed, and her foster family decidedto adopt her, arguing thatLexi had lived with them since she was 2 and knowsthem as her family. The Pages had explored that heritage before Lexi was placed with them, and they made an effort to teach Lexi Choctaw language and stories. The girl has visited the Utah family regularly over the past three years, she said. During 1832 and 1833 about five thousand more Choctaw arrived. L.A.-based American rock band Steel Panther recently said goodbye to long-time member and bassist Lexxi Foxx. Please help #bringlexihome 5 Freeway through the Grapevine reopens, CHP escorting traffic, 2 brothers found guilty of murdering groom at Chino wedding reception, 1 dead, 1 hurt after NorCal high school stabbing, police say. Lexi shows her face by telling the junior deckhand to "take [his] Afrikaans ass and go the f-k away." (For the record, this is simply further proof that she has no idea what she's talking . Already a subscriber? About a year ago, I happened upon this statement about the Monitor in the Harvard Business Review under the charming heading of do things that dont interest you: Many things that end up being meaningful, writes social scientist Joseph Grenny, have come from conference workshops, articles, or online videos that began as a chore and ended with an insight. You may recognize 23-year-old Lexi Hensler from your TikTok "For You" Page, or that time she picked a boyfriend for her best friend, Pierson Wodzynski, on Bestie Picks Bae. Other children in their home sobbed and screeched. Youll get the Monitor Weekly magazine, the Monitor Daily email, and unlimited access to CSMonitor.com. A little girl was taken away from her longtime foster family, who was in the process of adopting her, because she is 1/64 Native American, reported NBC News. We believe news can and should expand a sense of identity and possibility beyond narrow conventional expectations. Dont miss reporting and analysis from the Hill and the White House. It also erred when it failed to consider Lexis best interests, instead preferring ICWA. The little girl has a tiny bit of Choctaw ancestry just 1.5 percent and under federal law the Choctaw Nation can decide her fate. This article was published more than1 year ago. Rusty and Summer Page are losing their foster daughter, Lexi, whom theyve raised as their own for the last four years. Bone-gatherers were notable for their distinctive tattooing and long fingernails. She has covered a range of issues, including breaking news, immigration, law and order, race, religion and gender issues, politics, human interest stories and education. The Choctaw Nation, far from their seemingly harmless statement earlier in the week, stated that they advocated for Lexi's placement with the Utah family.. A weekly digest of Monitor views and insightful commentary on major events. The department did not officially request expedited placement until November 2012, one year after Lexi was placed with the Pages & thoroughly bonded/attached. The family took the case to court, but their most recent emergency stay was lifted. Among the southeastern agriculturalists the Choctaw were perhaps the most skillful farmers, producing surplus crops to sell and trade. Lexi is 1/64th Choctaw on her fathers side, according to court documents, which also note that she was 17 months old when she was removed from her birth parents custody. . Between 1820 and 1870, around 2.5 million people moved from Ireland to Americamore than a third of the U.S. population in 1810. Hello world! . The Pages have filed an appeal in the California Supreme Court. Our family is so incredibly devastated. Court documents state that the extended family members in Utah are not Native American. ", "Many steps have been taken by the Choctaw Nation to ensure the best placement of Lexi," the statement added. A weekly update on music, movies, cultural trends, and education solutions. Native American children with Native American families. These relatives have been a part of Lexis life for almost five years. The ICWA requires that Indian children be placed with Indian foster families. You can renew your subscription or Omissions? 0. In the 1830s the Choctaw were forced to move to what is now Oklahoma, as were the other members of the Five Civilized Tribesthe Creek, Cherokee, Chickasaw, and Seminole. The girl is 1/64thChoctaw Native American, meaning her case falls under the Indian Child Welfare Act, a federal law that claims to promote tribal families by keeping Native American children with Native American families. Indeed, the parents of President Andrew Jackson, who . Graham and Lena Kelley of Newhall, who are foster aunt and uncle to Lexi, pray Monday, March, 21, 2016, with other supporters outside her foster home in Santa Clarita. They helped to reunify with a biological grandmother & continue to maintain contact with the biological father, grandmother & children. Select stories from the Monitor that empower and uplift. The court agreed, finding that the Page family had not proven by clear and convincing evidence that it was a certainty the child would suffer emotional harm by the transfer.. Articles from Britannica Encyclopedias for elementary and high school students. On Monday morning, a crowd of more than 50 people holding signs and singing hymns still stood in solidarity with the Page family. Lexi, I love you! the small girls foster mother, Summer Page, called out. Our work isn't possible without your support. DCFS spokeswoman Amara Suarez said they try to prepare both families as well as the child for such a move to another state, including visitations. The Pages' legal team also argued that Congress did not intend ICWA's placement preferences to be used to remove a child from a loving home in these circumstances and that they were designed to give state courts flexibility to depart from the placement preferences where there is "good cause" to do so. Im scared. The father is an enrolled member of an Indian tribe, and the girl is considered an Indian child under the Indian Child Welfare Law. Six-year-old Lexi threw one arm around Page and her other arm around a cream-colored, costume-pearls-wearing teddy bear as she was carried to a carfor the first stretch in a long journey to her new home. Some erupted into tears, prayed aloud or sang hymns following a few seconds of stunned silence. In a statement, the National Indian Child Welfare Association said the Pages were aware for years that the girl was an American Indian but chose to 'drag out litigation as long as possible, creating instability for the child'. She has a loving relationship with them,shesaid. Heimov told the Daily News thatLexi has one sister who lives with the relatives in Utah and another sister who will livenearby. The Choctaw are known for their distinctive head-flattening. 1 talking about this. The Pages have been fighting that decision for several years, and want to adopt Lexi, but an appeals court found they "had not proven by clear and convincing evidence that it was a certainty the child would suffer emotional harm by the transfer." Because of an arbitrary law its ripping her from a stable environment, he said. The Pages addressed these issues through consistency and loving care, treating her as their own daughter. Social workers seized a hysterical six-year-old girl from the home of her white foster family on Monday because she is part Native American. We will continue to pursue the appeal, and we will press on to the U.S. Supreme Court if that becomes necessary, she said in an email. Because Lexi is part native-american the Department of Children and Family Services may remove her from her current home and place her with a native american family. Lexi is 1/64th Choctaw on her father's side, according to court documents, which also note that she was 17 months old when she was removed from her birth parents' custody. or call us at 1-617-450-2300. Today, it is located near Noxapter, Mississippi. Rusty choked back tears as he pleaded with Child Welfare Service not to break up his family early Monday. Lexi lived four of her first six years with a non-Native American California foster family, but because she is 1/64th Choctaw, tribal officials got her taken from the Californians and sent to live in Utah with a distant relative. A selection of the most viewed stories this week on the Monitor's website. Rusty and Summer Page were not giving up their fight to bring their one-time foster daughter back to their home. "There's no doubt in my mind that what happened . We change lives. Page told KNX-AM radio. For the sake of Lexi and everyone in this house right now.. I was explaining to him that the women "give it up" much easier than in his day, and do shit ya didn't even talk about back then as a matter of of course. Antonio was a casualty of the ICWAs form of identity politics the allocation of legal status and group entitlements based on biology. Tribal governments were effectively dissolved in 1906 but have continued to exist in a limited form. This is going to destroy these children,' Tari Kelly, Lexi's foster grandmother, told ABC 7. The custody battle over a 6-year-old girl heated up on Friday, as a state appeals court heard arguments from both sides. The child's relatives in Utah have . Save Lexi. Rusty Page carries Lexi while Summer Page, in the background, cries as members of family services (l.) arrive to take Lexi away from her foster family in Santa Clarita, Calif., Monday. 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