Eagle feather law

In the United States, the eagle feather law provides many exceptions to federal wildlife laws regarding eagles and other migratory birds to enable Native Americans to continue their traditional, spiritual and cultural practices.

Debates have centered on the differences between enrollment in a federally recognized Native American tribe, vs a racial, ethnic or self-identified concept of Indigeneity.

Defenders of the law have argued it is the only legal protection of Native American spirituality[2] and that because eagle supplies are limited, increasing the number of people who can have eagle parts may make feathers more scarce as well as endanger the lives of too many migratory birds (including threatened or endangered species).

Arguments in favor of amending the law (notably by supporters of Religious Freedom with Raptors, an organization dedicated to changing the eagle feather law) have been made on the grounds that it imposes "racial preferences" for Native Americans[3] and that the requirement of tribal enrollment to possess eagles undermines tribal sovereignty rights to fully welcome and include non-Natives in tribal customs involving eagle feathers.

[4][5] Religious Freedom with Raptors also advocate removing enrollment requirements from 50 CFR 22, stating that enrollment requirements are a racial bias, and that such action would enable all U.S. citizens to apply for eagles or parts from the National Eagle Repository (overseen by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service).