Our family is so incredibly devastated. In the meantime, our clients hope that the family in Utah will follow through on their promise to keep Lexi in contact with her family in Los Angeles. Latest book reviews, author interviews, and reading trends. The law defines family based on marriage, affinity or blood.. Other children in their home sobbed and screeched. The court decision rests on a federal law meant to protect native American children's best interests, but the Pagesargue that it has been misapplied in Lexi's case and is forcing her to be ripped from theonly family that she has ever known.. Now it's like asking for a kiss. 1831 The Choctaw Nation began removal from Mississippi to Indian Territory, becoming the first of the Five Tribes to be forcibly removed. The young girl is being sent to live with extended relatives in Utah. (Page 8), January, 2013 Lexis attorney opposed Lexis move to Utah, issuing a Do Not Remove order to prevent Lexi from being moved. She deserves for her rights to be heard. Menu. The California court appointed a marriage and family therapist to perform a child custody evaluation to assess the mental health and parenting practices of both parties. Lexi was ripped away from the only family she has ever known because of the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA). SABINA GHEBREMEDHIN, KAYNA WHITWORTH, DUAN PERRIN, VIDEO: Foster Family Appeals Removal of Part-Native American Child, Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. Two women and a man at least one of whom was an L.A. County social worker knocked on the Page familys door in Saugus about 2:30 p.m. About 10 minutes later, the girl was carried to a car by her foster father as his wife screamed Lexi, I love you! and another girl with her screamed No! amid sounds of a child crying. Motivational influencer "Laughing Lexi" has gone missing. Lexi clutched a teddy bear and cried as she was taken from the Pages' home on March 21 as neighbors prayed and sang hymns in support of the family. During 1832 and 1833 about five thousand more Choctaw arrived. The Pages have fostered beforebut despite accusations, had a good relationship with the biological father & had no intention of adopting. This is going to destroy these children,' Tari Kelly, Lexi's foster grandmother, told ABC 7. They . They helped to reunify with a biological grandmother & continue to maintain contact with the biological father, grandmother & children. All rights reserved. By continuing to browse the site The brutal racial politics of the Indian Child Welfare Act, Sign up for a weekly roundup of thought-provoking ideas and debates. Her paternal grandmother informed the court that he was enrolled in the tribe. She will live with a Utah couple who are not Native Americans but are related by marriage to her father. Foster parents Rusty and Summer Page had launched an online petition claiming the girl, Lexi, would be ripped away from the only family that she has ever known. The reason, they say, is that Lexi is part Choctaw and under the federal Indian Child Welfare Act, she is being moved to Utah to live with nonblood-related extended relatives of her biological father. Her mother had been accused of substance abuse and her father had a criminal history, according to court records. The family took the case to court, but their most recent emergency stay was lifted. 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. or call us at 1-617-450-2300. "The law is very clear that siblings should be kept together whenever they can be, and they should be placed together even if they were not initially together," Ms. Heimov told the Los Angeles Daily News. When Lexi was 17 months old, authorities took her from her birth mother, who had substance abuse issues, and her biological father, whohad an extensive criminal history, according to court records. She shared four photos and a long caption on her Instagram account. Images of foster father Rusty Page clutching 6-year-old Lexi left an indelible mark when the L.A. County 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 . (Page 40), Lexis birth-father initially denied any Indian heritage, and the record does not contain any evidence he ever lived on a reservation or had any social, political, or cultural ties to the tribe. (Page 4 footnote), Lexis first months at the Pages house were very difficult, showing substantial attachment issues. Lexi Hensler and Brent Rivera spend a lot of time together at work, so it's not really a surprise that they have become close friends! Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree. In 1992 a group of twenty-two Irish men and women walked the 600-mile Trail of Tears, raising $1,000 for every dollar given by the Choctaw in 1847. LOS ANGELES (CN) - A California court of appeals delivered a fresh blow to a foster family seeking custody of a 6-year-old Native American girl, finding it in her best interest to live with her extended family in Utah. Oklahoma had removed him from his mothers custody after he suffered a fractured skull and severe bruising between his testicles and rectum. On March 9, Rusty and Summer Page appealed afamily courts decision to send Lexitolive with her Utah relatives, and the court granted a temporary stay, the familys attorney,Lori Alvino McGill, told The Post. The demonstrators were trying to prevent the DCF from coming overnight to remove six-year-old Lexi from Summer and Rusty's care. 23:09 GMT 21 Mar 2016 There was clear & convincing evidence that continued placement with the birth-father would likely cause Lexi serious emotional or physical damage. We are appealing the decision, and we have asked the state Supreme Court to step in and halt this hasty change in custody before it causes irreparable harm. 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 Choctaw Trail of Tears was the attempted ethnic cleansing and relocation by the United States government of the Choctaw Nation from their country, referred to now as the Deep South (Alabama, Arkansas, Mississippi, and Louisiana), to lands west of the Mississippi River in Indian Territory in the 1830s by the United States government. Lexi, who is 1.5 percent, or 1/64 Choctaw, was six years old when she was taken from her foster home near Los Angeles in a tearful parting last March. 0. '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. The money went to relieve suffering in famine . 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. The courts have decided that Lexi will live with non-Native American relatives of her birth father through marriage. By age2, Lexi hadbeen placed with the Pages. Omissions? In the mid-18th century, there were 20,000 Choctaw living in 60 or 70 settlements along the Pearl, Chickasawhay, and Pascagoula rivers. Lexi's father himself is enrolled with the Choctaw Nation, but was not aware of it; according to court documents, Lexi is 1/64 Choctaw. "We miss seeing you, holding you, teaching you, singing with you and playing with you," said Rusty Page, her former foster father. The Choctaw knew of this case from the get go. According to the Los Angeles Daily News, Lexi and her . This website uses cookies to Please help #bringlexihome It was painted by the famous artist George Catlin (1796-1872) in 1838. At 17 months, the girl was removed from the custody of her birth mother, who had substance abuse problems and had lost custody of at least six other children, and the birth father, who has an extensive criminal history and lost custody of one other child, according to 2nd District Court of Appeal documents. We want to bridge divides to reach everyone. Lexi is a 6-year-old girl from California who has spent the the majority of her life in a loving home - a home that she wanted to be her forever home. The History of Choctaw tribe. She was 17 months old when she was removed from the custody of her biological mother, who had a substance abuse problem. But he said in an earlier statement that the agency would remain in compliance with the court orders and laws governing our work.. |, Child & Adolescent Psychiatry & Mental Health. And it happened really fast. continue to use the site without a 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. 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 . And we can prove it.. Due to a court order, the 6-year-old girl was taken from her home by Los Angeles County social workers to go live with extended family in Utah. (Page 2), The first trial court was wrong with how it determined good cause for deviating from ICWAs placement preferences. Heres why. Track SoCal rain with LIVE Megadoppler 7000 HD. Because Lexi is part Choctaw Indian, officials are seeking to place her with extended relatives of her Native American father. remanded) to the lower court. The legacy of that system is still felt on reservations today. At issue is the Indian . "How is it that a screaming child, saying 'I want to stay, I'm scared,' how is [it] in her best interest to pull her from the girl she was before that doorbell rang?" They are not strangers in any way, shape or form.. Articles from Britannica Encyclopedias for elementary and high school students. May 21, 2022 . ICWA gives tribal governments a strong voice concerning child custody proceedings that involve Indian children, by allocating tribes exclusive jurisdiction over the case when a child is a ward of the tribe. "The Choctaw Nation has advocated for Lexi to live with her family since 2011," the tribe said in a statement. The tribal authorities decided that Lexi will live in Utah . The Choctaw Nation has advocated for Lexi to live with her family since 2011. Her biological father, who is Native American, had an extensive criminal history, according to court records cited by the Los Angeles Daily News. 'The Choctaw Nation desires the best for this Choctaw child. Lexi, 6, has lived with the Page . "An independent clinical psychologist was brought in to gauge her ability to transition from the foster home to living in Utah. And Im going to argue that we change lives precisely because we force open that too-small box that most human beings think they live in. Beaten again, he died a month after returning to his mother. (Gingers uncle is Lexis paternal step-grandfather) (Page 7), The tribe did not want the family in Utah to meet Lexi unless the birth fathers reunification services terminatedsomething that took over a year (Page 7), Lexi reported that she did not want to visit the family in Utah and did not like it when they visited. The father is an enrolled member of an Indian tribe, and the girl is considered an Indian child under the Indian Child Welfare Law. Foster parents Rusty and Summer Page vowed to get the girl back, saying they love their daughter and have . All parties agreed, the court agreeing that she is extremely bonded. (Pages 5, 8, 11 & 13), In mid-2012, the Department was confident there would be reunification with the birth-father, however soon thereafter his emotional state deteriorated when he separated from his wife. Her mother had substance abuse problems and her father had an extensive criminal history, according to court documents. Log in to hide ads. A formal letter was sent to DCFS that never made its way to the tribe. 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.. The Choctaw Nation said it "desires the best for this Choctaw child." The Pages have three children and wanted to adopt Lexi, who was 17 months old when she was removed from the custody of her parents. Monitor journalism changes lives because we open that too-small box that most people think they live in. The law is very clear that siblings should be kept together whenever they can be and they should be placed together even if they were not initially together.. Lexi has also been on extended visits to Utah. Real news, real hope. Some erupted into tears, prayed aloud or sang hymns following a few seconds of stunned silence. Until recently, however, her father was trying to regain custody. 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. The horrible crash happened Monday afternoon just after 3:30 p.m. in an area of rural Collinsville near North Bluff Road. 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