Sunday, October 26, 2014

Native American Grave Protection and Repatriation Act


There is always a lot of controversy when it comes to race. A big problem that arose in the 1900s was the fact that Native American remains were being stored in US museums.  Native activists found this to be very disrespectful and demanded repatriation of the bodies. In 1989 the National Museum of American Indian Act (NMAI) was passed which demanded repatriation.  In the beginning, nobody had any idea on how to return the remains back to the correct tribe which is why they had to begin tracking ancestors, and ancestors remains.  This was a very long and brutal process.  With one slip up, you could have the Native American remains in the completely wrong area and given back to the wrong tribe.  With that being said, they passed the Native American Grave Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA).  
Arrow heads from many different locations. Located in the National
Museum of the Native American.

The NAGPRA establishes ownership of cultural items discovered on federal or tribal land.  Once artifacts are found, they are tracked back to the closest relative one can find, and returned to them.  There were federal grants given to indian tribes to assist their needs in finding their remaining artifacts since this was the only way US museums felt as if they could repay the Native American tribes for racially offending them. With this act came 3 main issues.  The first issue being, should anthropologists and archeologists in the US comply with the Native American Grave Protection and Repatriation Act? Many thought that they had no business in handling Native American remains, that is was not their place.  The second issue was, is this law morally justified? After people had gotten over the fact that the US was indeed going to help with the repatriation, they began to wonder if it is even respectful to be handling these items in general.  The third problem that goes along with issue number two is, the more you handle these objects the further they are from being the original artifact.  After so many people handle these items, is it even worth the trouble anymore and does it have the same kind of fulfilment when the artifact is finally returned? After a lot of talk on this particular situation it had come to a conclusion and Native Americans all over the place said “They are our people, and they are coming home.” In the end, despite the previous issues, all that was really important was getting these remains returned to their families, and thus the act was in motion!
Pottery dating back 2,000 years
on the Wall of Pots in the
Arizona State Museum
Human remains, funerary objects, cultural artifacts and more were returned to descendants.  It was a basic right to the people to return the human remains regardless of the geography.  If any remains could not be tracked to any ancestor or tribe they were cared for in a special facility with respectful disposition.  Many think the greatest flaw In the NAGPRA was that they placed responsibility in the hands of the institutions that disconnected the natives.  This is why it is often referred to as an imperfect compromise.  But in the end, people working on this situation are using cultural and direct history and all of their memory and background to do everything they can to return these items.  There is not much more that one could ask for and expect.  The repatriation office does everything in their power to asses cultural origins and produce reports on findings, to make it easier for those on a mission to find their families remains.  There are six complicated steps to repatriation, to ensure that the remains are going to the correct families.  
Artifacts eligible for repatriation in the 
Gilbert Museum of Relics 
Step one is the Information request.  Any native that is interested must first be submitted by an official native commutative representative and then can write, call, or fax the repatriation office and request information on specific objects.  After this, one will receive a letter of acknowledgement, a database inventory on relative items, a CD with pictures of relative collections, and a copy of the NMAI act/policy.  
Pipes and stone tools located in the
Gilbert Museum of Relics
Step two is the formal request for a visit and collections review.  Natives that wish to review a document collection is required to submit a formal request signed by the head of their native communities government.  The letter must name the official who will accompany you during your visit and include objects of interest and a brief description of them.
Step three is the consultation visit and collections review.  One must review the NMAI collections and consult the office before submitting a formal repatriation request.  The museum that is being contacted will support one visit per each native community.  Additional visits are at the travelers expense.  Before the consultation one will be given a list of things to review and prioritize all of the steps to ensure enough time to examine all the objects of interest.
Step four is the formal repatriation request.  One must submit a letter on official tribal letterhead and have it signed by the native community government or acting official.  One must have a letter of support as well which must identify native descent with evidence of this descent.  The request must include the museum catalog numbers and description of objects of interest.  The office staff will then acknowledge ones request and will asses the items to make sure it is eligible for repatriation and confirm ones claim.  
Step five is to research and report.  Research is assigned to a specialist who will gather all the available information on the claim.  Then tribal history experts (of any race) will be consulted and will report whether or not the items are accessible for repatriation.  Items will be examined and accepted or denied.
NAGPRA representative signs an agreement allowing museum to take
care of funerary objects of a CHeyenne child
Step six is deaccession and repatriation. The director will notify the Board of Trustees and the Museum will make arrangements to return items.
It is clearly a very long and repetitive process but that is only to ensure accuracy throughout repatriation.  If Native Americans are willing to go through so much trouble to have their ancestors remains returned to them, it is definitely worth the hassle to help them through the process.  Seeing the excitement on ones face when they figure out their artifacts are finally coming home is one of the fulfilling moments which is why museums are so helpful when it comes to this important task. There are so many Native American remains to be returned, but one can learn just as much as they can about objects of repatriation as they can learn about that object when it is sitting in a museum.  Returning these artifacts is a win win situation for everyone.
Works Cited
"Collections." Home Page. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Oct. 2014. file://localhost/<http/::www.nmai.si.edu:explore:collections:>.
This area of the National Museum of the American Indian website offered a couple pictures of
artifacts in the museum.  This made researching the rest of my topic easier because I was able to see exactly what types of items were available for repatriation. It helped to better grasp how valuable some of these items were and were and how important it was to return to their families.
"Lost and Found: NAGPRA, Scattered Relics, and Restorative Methodologies." Academia.edu. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 Oct. 2014. file://localhost/<http/::www.academia.edu:3513272:Lost_and_Found_NAGPRA_Scattered_Relics_and_Restorative_Methodologies>.
This website helped me to see not just how important the task of repatriation was, but how seriously people take it and how exciting it can be.  Finding Native American remains is like a big mystery to people and many like to sort it out and figure out the story behind the artifact.  It gives them a special kind of thrill to be able to return items to their original families, a special satisfaction.  I also used pictures ffrom this cite.
"Repatriation." Home Page. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Oct. 2014. file://localhost/<http/::www.nmai.si.edu:explore:collections:repatriation:>.
The most important thing I found on this cite was the different steps to repatriation.  It is a very difficult task and requires a good deal of effort just to be considered for repatriation.  This cite also provides a lot on the history of the situation and decisions made through passing laws.
United States. National Park Service. "NPS Archeology Program: The Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA)." National Parks Service. U.S. Department of the Interior, n.d. Web. 20 Oct. 2014. file://localhost/<http/::www.nps.gov:archeology:tools:Laws:nagpra.htm>.
This cite revealed the purpose behind repatriation and the controversy it can potentially cause.  It shows the issues that can arise which is important to be able to touch point on. It also provided many quotes with important evidence within them.
"Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act." ABC-CLIO Solutions. N.p., n.d. Web. 25 Oct. 2014. <http%3A%2F%2Famericanindian.abc-clio.com%2FSearch%2FDisplay%2F1388021%3Fterms%3DNAGPRA>.
This cite shows the history behind the situation and the acts that were passed.  It does a good job on touching on just how sacred a majority of these items can be.
Beisaw, April M. "Memory, Identity, and NAGPRA in the Northeastern United States." JSTOR. Wiley
on Behalf of the American Anthropological Association, n.d. Web. 27 Oct.
This cite helps me to better understand the cultural history specifically.  It also touches on what
other resources tend to ignore.  And this is the ones understanding of the process in general.
"Interior Announces Copy.6M in NAGPRA Grants, Arizona State Museum Among
       Recipients Read More at
       Http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2012/08/29/interior-announces-
       16m-nagpra-grants-arizona-state-museum-among-recipients-131549." Indian
       Country. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 Oct. 2014.
This website gives info on areas that are arising today and allow one to notice that this is an
on-going and very expensive cycle. I also used the picture from this article.
"NMNH - Repatriation Office - What Is Repatriation?" NMNH - Repatriation Office -
What Is Repatriation? N.p., n.d. Web. 27 Oct. 2014.
This website gives a lot of information on the repatriation committee, what they do, and how hard their job can be.  It also provided pictures that helped better understand the process of repatriation.






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