June 21, 2024

Dear USET/USET SPF Family,

We write to share that, in partnership with the Catawba Nation, USET SPF filed an amicus brief in a case now pending before the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, where the Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska argues the U.S. Department of the Army is obligated under the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA) to repatriate Native children from the cemetery located at the Carlisle Indian Industrial School.

A video prepared by USET SPF can be viewed below providing more background information on the federal Indian boarding school era and this litigation. You can view the amicus brief filed by USET SPF and the Catawba Nation here, and the Law360 article discussing the amicus brief can be viewed here.

The Case Number before the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia is 1:24-cv-00078.

Now that we have our own In-House General Counsel, USET SPF is able to participate more directly in important litigation affecting our member Tribal Nations and all of Indian Country. We are proud to have added our voice to the issue of repatriation from Indian boarding schools through our preparation of this amicus brief. And we are proud to have served the Catawba Nation by helping to share its experiences in this space. We encourage you to have your General Counsel reach out to USET SPF General Council, Katie Klass, at kklass@usetinc.org, to brief her on the legal issues affecting your Tribal Nation so that USET SPF can consider the best way to support you in litigation or otherwise.

For more information, please contact Liz Malerba, USET SPF Director of Policy and Legislative Affairs, at lmalerba@usetinc.org or Katie Klass, USET SPF General Counsel, at kklass@usetinc.org.

Established in 2014, the USET Sovereignty Protection Fund (USET SPF) is a non-profit, inter-Tribal organization advocating on behalf of thirty-three (33) federally recognized Tribal Nations from the Northeastern Woodlands to the Everglades and across the Gulf of Mexico. USET SPF is dedicated to promoting, protecting, and advancing the inherent sovereign rights and authorities of Tribal Nations and in assisting its membership in dealing effectively with public policy issues.