Advance Legal/Policy Protections

Commit to Antiracist Practice

Help Families with Actual Needs

Nurture Partnerships

Generate Relevant Research

Eliminate Incentives for Child Removal

Lack of legal representation, cultural values codified in discriminatory policies and assessments, undefined methods of recourse, and abstract policies and terms (such as “conservatorship” instead of removal) in systems and across states perpetuate inequity. Survivors need access to legal representation and institutional and public policy advocacy to protect their rights and freedoms. Access to counsel, clear and transparent avenues for grievance and recourse for families, the elimination of the practice of using “safety plans” as signed legal documents to avoid due process, under threat of having children removed, and reevaluation mandatory reporting in ways that account for implicit bias are needed to promote public policy that prevents unnecessary removals and protects survivors.

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Strategies to counter these challenges can include:

Promote access to counsel during initial stages of a case

Advocate for the establishment of programs that ensure survivors have access to legal representation from the outset of their involvement with child welfare systems
Collaborate with legal aid organizations and pro bono lawyers to provide free or low-cost legal services for survivors
Develop training for child welfare workers to inform survivors about their right to legal representation and support them in connecting with legal resources

Advance clear and transparent avenues for complaints and alternatives for families

Work with child welfare agencies to create easily accessible and well-publicized channels for survivors to file complaints and seek redress for any injustices or mistreatment they experience within the system
Advocate for the development of alternative dispute resolution mechanisms that prioritize family well-being and healing over punitive measures
Promote restorative justice practices that empower survivors and the community to address harm and seek resolution collaboratively

Work to eliminate the practice of using “safety plans” as signed legal documents to avoid due process, under threat of having children removed

Advocate for policy changes that protect survivors' due process rights and ensure that safety plans are voluntary, empowering, and not used to coerce survivors
Develop guidelines and training for child welfare workers on how to engage survivors in collaborative safety planning, respecting their autonomy and choices

Engage in action to reevaluate mandatory reporting in ways that account for implicit bias

Advocate for the development of comprehensive and culturally sensitive training programs for mandated reporters, addressing implicit biases and their impact on reporting decisions
Collaborate with lawmakers and experts to review and update mandatory reporting laws to consider the potential consequences of bias in reporting and reduce unwarranted removals. (i.e. not accepting anonymous abuse reports because of the potential for bias)

Promote public policy that prevents unnecessary removals and protects survivors such as providing education on and protecting the Indian Child Welfare Act

Collaborate with tribal communities to implement culturally relevant and community-based solutions that prioritize family preservation

Advocate for policies that open child welfare cases in the name of the person using violence; and that keep survivor names off the central registry

Work with policymakers to ensure that child welfare cases are accurately documented, with a focus on identifying the person using violence and protecting the survivor's confidentiality
Advocate for policies that prevent survivors from being unfairly penalized or stigmatized due to their involvement with the child welfare system

Advocate for lawmakers to stop the Adoption and Safe Families (ASFA) clock for domestic violence-related removals of children from the care of their survivor parent

Advocate for funding for quality legal representation for survivors of domestic violence in the child welfare, and dependency court system

The Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA)
was enacted in 1978 in response to a crisis affecting American Indian and Alaska Native children, families, and tribes. Studies revealed that large numbers of Native children were being separated from their parents, extended families, and communities by state child welfare and private adoption agencies. In fact, research found that 25%–35% of all Native children were being removed; of these, 85% were placed outside of their families and communities—even when fit and willing relatives were available.
The Impact of Mandatory Reporting Laws on Survivors of Intimate Partner Violence
Intersectionality, Help-Seeking and the Need for Change Research illustrates the importance of help-seeking for intimate partner violence (IPV) survivors. However, mandatory reporting (MR) laws can affect help-seeking by requiring some sources of support to report survivors to formal systems. This convergent mixed methods study of 2462 survivors surveyed through the National Domestic Violence Hotline explores how MR laws impact survivors’ help-seeking, the outcomes of their help-seeking, and whether their race, gender, and/or sexual orientation influenced their experiences. Findings indicated that MR laws reduce help-seeking for over a third of survivors, provider warnings about MR often reduce survivors’ ability to receive the support they seek, and reports when triggered make the situation worse for most survivors. Significant differences emerged by gender identity and race/ethnicity, emphasizing unique contexts for trans and gender non-conforming survivors and survivors of color. We provide policy and practice implications given these unintended harms of MR laws for IPV survivors.
How Mandatory Reporting was Supposed to Stop Severe Child Abuse. It Punished Poor Families Instead
News report on what happened after the Penn State scandal and how a flood of unfounded allegations followed, ensnaring thousands of low-income parents in Pennsylvania.

The Heart of ICWA: LUKAS
ICWA is considered the gold standard of child welfare practice. Keeping any child from their loving extended family that have the ability to care for them is not in their best interest. Children thrive when they know their culture
Not Neutral: The Impact of Mandatory Reporting on Domestic Violence Survivors
As increasing light is shed on the limitations of criminal legal responses to domestic violence, calls for community-based solutions that do not involve the criminal legal system are growing louder. Mandatory reporting laws pose a significant challenge in making this shift, however, by connecting many informal and formal domestic violence supports to criminal and legal institutions. This Teen Dating Violence Awareness & Prevention Month (TDVAM) webinar explores the impact of mandatory reporting on domestic violence survivors, highlighting unique impacts for LGBTQ young people. Presenters share findings from a 2016 survey that examined how mandatory reporting affects the help-seeking of domestic violence survivors. Presenters also identify practical strategies advocates can use to decrease negative consequences of reporting and increase survivor safety and self-determination.