Santa Clara Pueblo v. Martinez
Case Date: 05/05/1978
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Santa Clara Pueblo v. Martinez, 436 U.S. 49 (1978)[1], involved a request to stop denying tribal membership to those children born to female (not male) tribal members who married outside of the tribe. The mother who made the case pleaded that the discrimination against her child was solely based on sex, which violated the Indian Civil Rights Act of 1968. The courts decided that "...tribal common-law sovereign immunity prevented a suit against the tribe." This decision ultimately strengthened tribal self-determination by further proving that generally, the federal government played no enforcement role over the tribal governments.
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