American Democracy and the Promise of Justice

Introduction

In 1989, a mom travelled 200 miles off the reservation to give birth to twins, and right after she was released from the hospital, the Holyfields, enrolled members of the Choctaw Nation, went to the courthouse to terminate their parental rights.  The court quickly facilitated the adoption of the twin babies, without giving notice to the Choctaw tribe.  Finally after a year, the Choctaw tribe tried to petition to void the adoption decree, because they did not receive any notice, and therefore, did not comply with Indian Child Welfare Act.  The state court argued that since the Holyfield’s had their babies off the reservation, then the tribe did not have jurisdiction.  The Supreme Court voided the adoption and returned the twins to the Choctaw Nation.  The Supreme Court ruled that since the reservation had a limited number of hospitals where a woman can have a baby, most of them went off the reservation to have babies.  The babies and the mother were still domicile of the tribe, and so the tribe had exclusive jurisdiction.  Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians v. Holyfield was one of the first times that the adoption involving Native children made it to the Supreme Court.  The Supreme Court’s interpretation of ICWA was to rule in favor of a tribe.¹

The question is, was it is the right thing to do?  It’s easy to see that the Nonnative couple could have provided for the child, and that child would not have been exposed to the everyday struggles of being in a foster care system. It’s also understandable the importance of maintaining cultural heritage, but if the tribe cannot provide adequate homes for the child, wouldn’t they be better off being placed in a stable home?  These are questions that will be explored throughout the unit.

Áłchíní are considered sacred and holy in the Navajo Culture. This principal is so important that the Navajo Nation claimed authority to assert jurisdiction over all Navajo children regardless of where they reside.²  Do the children know they have rights? Do they know their rights? Do they know that their culture and heritage is an important part of who they are, and an important part of their rights?

Kayenta Unified School District is located inside the borders of the sprawling and vast Navajo Reservation that is approximately 17,544,000 square miles located in the four corners area.  The scenic reservation extends into southeastern Utah, Northwestern New Mexico, and a majority of it is in Northeastern Arizona. It is the largest reservation in the United States.  The tribe has approximately 350,000 members according to 2016 data. The town of Kayenta is a rural community that has a population of approximately 5,189 people according to the 2010 Census.  The population is mostly Navajo people.  Kayenta Township and Kayenta Chapter are the two government systems that operate in the town.  The township is operated by a 5 member elected board that meets the needs of the town and people who live within the vicinity of the township, while the Kayenta Chapter is operated by the Navajo tribal Council Delegate that represents the town of Kayenta and the surrounding communities at the Navajo Nation Capital in Window Rock, Arizona.  Most of the funds generated by business in town come from community members and surrounding community members who come into town to shop at the only Bashas Shopping Center, several fast-food restaurants, and a couple of gas stations within a 50 mile radius.  Additional moneys are generated from tourists who pass through the town to visit several tourism prospects.  The town is located about 30 miles from the Utah border and picturesque Monument Valley, and about 90 miles from the Four Corners, the only place where four state borders meet. Furthermore, it is approximately 50 miles from Canyon De Chelly in Chinle, Arizona.  Kayenta Unified School District #27 has three schools; Kayenta Elementary School, Kayenta Middle School, and Monument Valley High School.  According to the June 19, 2019 School Board Minutes, approximately 2,698 students attended the school district.  A majority of the students are Navajos.

I teach fourth grade English Learners (EL) in a Structured English Immersion (SEI) class.  Students in the SEI classroom are identified using the Primary Home Language Other Than English (PHLOTE) survey.  Basically, the survey asks three questions: does the child speak another language, do the parents speak another language, and does anyone in the household speak another language?  If a parent or guardian answers yes on one or more of the questions, they are considered for SEI class, dependent on how well they do on the placement assessment.  If the student passes the placement test, they are placed in a general education classroom. If they do not pass, they are placed in an SEI classroom.  An SEI class offers intensive 4 hour block of English Language instruction which include one hour of oral communication/ vocabulary, one hour of reading, one hour of grammar, and one hour of writing for students who speak English as a second language.  The state of Arizona has established proficiency standards for each domain. The goal is to reclassify the students as proficient in the English Language within two years of identifications.  The students are assessed each year using Arizona English Language Assessment (AZELLA).  In order for a student to reclassify, they have to test proficient in composite score, and especially score in proficient in reading and writing domains.³

Any curriculum with meaningful content, especially related to history and culture is lacking in most schools due to the current focus on raising test scores for English Language Arts and Mathematics.  Often I find myself teaching foundational reading skills, when I should be teaching my students comprehension skills.  I believe that comprehension can be taught from content rich curriculum.  This unit will help teach students comprehension skills using Navajo history, and the implication of policies.