Maine is home to the Wabanaki Nations—Penobscot, Passamaquoddy, Maliseet, and Mi’kmaq. Indigenous communities in Maine and across the nation already live with lasting impacts of colonization, forced removal, and family separation. Now, immigration enforcement actions by ICE threaten to repeat these historical harms. 

Family separation seriously harms children and families. For Indigenous families, family separation is not just a policy issue; it echoes generations of child removal through boarding schools and child welfare systems. Recent incidents in Maine and other states demonstrate that Indigenous people have been detained or questioned by ICE due to racial profiling and misidentification. These actions place Indigenous families at risk of separation. 

We call on Maine’s leaders and law enforcement agencies to take immediate steps to protect Indigenous children and families by:

Protecting Indigenous children from family separation due to immigration enforcement
Implementing limits or a moratorium on ICE actions involving families with minor children in Indigenous communities

Respecting tribal sovereignty by consulting with tribal governments before enforcement actions

Adopting child-centered, trauma-informed approaches to immigration enforcement

Ensuring state and local agencies do not cooperate with ICE in ways that harm Indigenous families

Upholding the principles of the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA), which affirms the right of Indigenous children to remain with their families and communities
We need your support to protect Indigenous children and families in Maine. By signing this petition, you show state leaders and law enforcement that our community values keeping families together, respecting culture, and ensuring children's safety. Every signature sends a strong message: keep our children safe and our communities united!