This case seeks to hold the federal government accountable for honoring its legal obligations toward Native American students so that all children have the opportunity to learn and fulfill their potential. For decades, the United States government has failed to provide children of the Havasupai tribe with quality educational opportunities equal to those afforded to other students throughout the United States.
This landmark lawsuit reveals profound failures by the federal government, which is responsible for operating the sole public school on the Havasupai reservation, along with a network of federal schools serving Native American children across the country. Specifically, the federal government has failed to enforce federal laws to provide these children with a basic general education, a system of special education, and necessary wellness and mental health services. The suit is unprecedented because it is the first of federal civil-rights action ever filed to address a wholesale denial of educational opportunities for both the general education and special education of Native American students.