peacemaker courts
The Native American Rights Fund's National Indian Law Library provides a comprehensive list of relevant news stories and academic articles on the peacemaking mechanisms and conflict resolution approaches of Native nations.
In the first of two interviews conducted in conjunction with his tenure as NNI Indigenous Leadership Fellow, John Petoskey, citizen and long-time General Counsel of the Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians (GTB), discusses how GTB has worked and continues to work to build and maintain...
Tribal courts on the nation’s Indian reservations must make due process of law and independence hallmarks of their justice system, U.S. District Judge Ralph Erickson told a gathering of judges and other tribal court personnel in Grand Forks Thursday. Tribes can and should incorporate such Indian...
The history of our judiciary begins in our ancient history. According to the Journey Narrative, the People journeyed through four worlds and, in the course of their journey, came upon many problems both natural and caused by the People, which had to be resolved before the journey continued. The...
Native leaders and scholars discuss what Native nations need to do to create strong, independent and culturally legimate justice systems.
For years, Judge Donald Costello sentenced offenders to jail and prison terms, only to see them back in his courtroom with nothing to show for their time served. Costello doesn't work that way anymore. Instead, he practices an innovative spin on the judicial system that has become an effective...
Rae Nell Vaughn, former Chief Justice of the Mississippi Choctaw Supreme Court, discusses the critical role that justice systems play in the rebuilding of Native nations and shares how the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians has worked to develop its justice system to reflect and promote its...
Former Chief Justice of the Mississippi Choctaw Supreme Court Rae Nell Vaughn provides a detailed overview of the growth and evolution of the Mississippi Choctaw's governance system and specifically its justice system, stressing the importance of Native nations providing a fair, effective,...
In this in-depth interview with NNI's Ian Record, Joseph Flies-Away, citizen and former chief judge of the Hualapai Tribe, discusses the central roe that justice systems can and should play in Native nation rebuilding efforts, how justice systems serve as platforms for healing and cultural renewal...
First Nations people are well aware that many of our governments and citizens struggle to move beyond the violence and dysfunction that characterizes some individuals, families and communities. Within some community settings, drugs and alcohol prevail, family members are involved in the justice...
