Post by Okwes on May 9, 2007 14:16:59 GMT -5
Indian Affairs, tribes address burials Agreement would help bury human
remains, funerary objects
Saturday, February 3rd 2007
www.cortezjournal.com/asp-bin/article_generation.asp?article_type\
=news&article_path=/news/07/news070203_2.htm
<http://www.cortezjournal.com/asp-bin/article_generation.asp?article_typ\
e=news&article_path=/news/07/news070203_2.htm>
The Colorado Commission of Indian Affairs, the Colorado Historical
Society and numerous American Indian tribes want to establish a process
for repatriating and burying culturally unidentifiable American Indian
human remains and related funerary objects.
"Attempts have been made to pass this law for seven years, but the law
was too vague." -Ernest House Jr. executive secretary Colorado
Commission of Indian Affairs
The aim is to fill the gaps in a federal law's process for returning
American Indian cultural items, including human remains and sacred
objects, to lineal descendants, culturally affiliated tribes, and Native
Hawaiian organizations.
While the law, known as the Native American Graves Protection and
Repatriation Act, established protocol for culturally identifiable human
remains and sacred objects, it has no repatriation process for those
that cannot be identified, said Bridget Ambler, curator of material
culture with the Colorado Historical Society.
"These items would sit on museum shelves permanently without a
mechanism that would allow us to return them to the tribes," Ambler
said.
Having their ancestors' funerary objects in storage is offensive to
tribes, Ambler said.
Ambler said the U.S. Department of the Interior and several American
Indian tribes have approved the process.
Ernest House Jr., executive secretary for the Colorado Commission of
Indian Affairs, said attempts to get a law for the process passed have
yielded no results.
"Attempts have been made to pass this law for seven years, but the
law was too vague," said House, a Ute Mountain Ute.
The process would not become law. It would be an agreement among the
historical society, the Colorado Commission of Indian Affairs, state
archaeologists and almost 50 tribes � including Colorado's two
Ute tribes � and would be the first of its kind in the nation,
Ambler said.
Ambler said all but three tribes have sent letters of support for the
protocol. Support from all tribes is needed before the process will be
implemented.
A new protocol for repatriating and burying culturally unidentifiable
human remains and associated funerary objects would include the
following:
Reducing the time frame from one year to 60 days for archaeologists to
examine all human remains more than 100 years old to determine age,
gender and ethnicity.
Establishing an additional 15-day period, after the 60 days, for
consultation between tribes and the Colorado Historical Society for
repatriation and burial.
Postings on the Federal Register giving parties 30 days to come forward
regarding culturally unidentifiable human remains and associated
funerary objects.
Returning human remains and associated funerary objects to tribes for
reburial.
The protocol would apply to culturally unidentifiable remains and
objects found on state and private lands, Ambler said. If no cultural
affiliation can be determined, the Ute Mountain Ute and Southern Ute
tribes would act as lead tribes in the repatriation and burial process,
informing the other tribes of burial times and locations so they can
attend, House said.
Establishing protocol for repatriating unidentifiable remains is
paramount since about 50 tribes roamed across Colorado throughout
history, House said.
<http://www.cortezjournal.com/shared-asp-bin/ad_redirect.aspx?account_nu\
mber=280&transaction_type=Button&transaction_number=9&expiration_style=D\
&href=http://chrisserwe.com/>
"A long time ago, when tribes wandered through areas, someone would
die and they buried them in that spot," House said.
The process would be especially critical for the Four Corners, with its
Ancestral Puebloan sites and residential and other types of development
that unearth human remains and sacred objects, House said.
If someone comes across human remains, House requests that they contact
local law enforcement. The law enforcement agency contacts the coroner.
If the remains are at least 100 years old, the coroner calls an
archaeologist, and if the remains are American Indian, the archaeologist
contacts House at the Colorado Commission of Indian Affairs.
The Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act provides a
process for museums and federal agencies to return certain cultural
items, including human remains and funerary and sacred objects, to
lineal descendants, culturally affiliated American Indian tribes and
Native Hawaiian organizations.
Federal agencies, and public and private museums � except the
Smithsonian Institution � that have received federal funds are
subject to NAGPRA. Colorado has a corollary law that applies to human
remains and associated funerary objects found on both private and public
property.
Congress passed NAGPRA because of a concern that cultural property
rights for American Indians were not adequately acknowledged by the
courts, or in practice by museums and federal agencies without specific
legislation, Sherry Hutt, program manager for NAGPRA, said in April
2005.
The NAGPRA repatriation process includes the following requirements:
Federal agencies and museums identify cultural items in their
collections that are subject to NAGPRA, and prepare summaries and
inventories of their items.
The agencies/museums must consult with lineal descendants, American
Indian tribes and Native Hawaiian organizations regarding the
identification and cultural affiliation of the NAGPRA items.
The agencies/museums must send notices to descendants, tribes and
Native Hawaiian organizations describing cultural items, lineal
descendance or cultural affiliation, and stating that the cultural items
may be repatriated.
The law requires the secretary of the U.S. Department of the Interior to
publish these notices in the Federal Register.
remains, funerary objects
Saturday, February 3rd 2007
www.cortezjournal.com/asp-bin/article_generation.asp?article_type\
=news&article_path=/news/07/news070203_2.htm
<http://www.cortezjournal.com/asp-bin/article_generation.asp?article_typ\
e=news&article_path=/news/07/news070203_2.htm>
The Colorado Commission of Indian Affairs, the Colorado Historical
Society and numerous American Indian tribes want to establish a process
for repatriating and burying culturally unidentifiable American Indian
human remains and related funerary objects.
"Attempts have been made to pass this law for seven years, but the law
was too vague." -Ernest House Jr. executive secretary Colorado
Commission of Indian Affairs
The aim is to fill the gaps in a federal law's process for returning
American Indian cultural items, including human remains and sacred
objects, to lineal descendants, culturally affiliated tribes, and Native
Hawaiian organizations.
While the law, known as the Native American Graves Protection and
Repatriation Act, established protocol for culturally identifiable human
remains and sacred objects, it has no repatriation process for those
that cannot be identified, said Bridget Ambler, curator of material
culture with the Colorado Historical Society.
"These items would sit on museum shelves permanently without a
mechanism that would allow us to return them to the tribes," Ambler
said.
Having their ancestors' funerary objects in storage is offensive to
tribes, Ambler said.
Ambler said the U.S. Department of the Interior and several American
Indian tribes have approved the process.
Ernest House Jr., executive secretary for the Colorado Commission of
Indian Affairs, said attempts to get a law for the process passed have
yielded no results.
"Attempts have been made to pass this law for seven years, but the
law was too vague," said House, a Ute Mountain Ute.
The process would not become law. It would be an agreement among the
historical society, the Colorado Commission of Indian Affairs, state
archaeologists and almost 50 tribes � including Colorado's two
Ute tribes � and would be the first of its kind in the nation,
Ambler said.
Ambler said all but three tribes have sent letters of support for the
protocol. Support from all tribes is needed before the process will be
implemented.
A new protocol for repatriating and burying culturally unidentifiable
human remains and associated funerary objects would include the
following:
Reducing the time frame from one year to 60 days for archaeologists to
examine all human remains more than 100 years old to determine age,
gender and ethnicity.
Establishing an additional 15-day period, after the 60 days, for
consultation between tribes and the Colorado Historical Society for
repatriation and burial.
Postings on the Federal Register giving parties 30 days to come forward
regarding culturally unidentifiable human remains and associated
funerary objects.
Returning human remains and associated funerary objects to tribes for
reburial.
The protocol would apply to culturally unidentifiable remains and
objects found on state and private lands, Ambler said. If no cultural
affiliation can be determined, the Ute Mountain Ute and Southern Ute
tribes would act as lead tribes in the repatriation and burial process,
informing the other tribes of burial times and locations so they can
attend, House said.
Establishing protocol for repatriating unidentifiable remains is
paramount since about 50 tribes roamed across Colorado throughout
history, House said.
<http://www.cortezjournal.com/shared-asp-bin/ad_redirect.aspx?account_nu\
mber=280&transaction_type=Button&transaction_number=9&expiration_style=D\
&href=http://chrisserwe.com/>
"A long time ago, when tribes wandered through areas, someone would
die and they buried them in that spot," House said.
The process would be especially critical for the Four Corners, with its
Ancestral Puebloan sites and residential and other types of development
that unearth human remains and sacred objects, House said.
If someone comes across human remains, House requests that they contact
local law enforcement. The law enforcement agency contacts the coroner.
If the remains are at least 100 years old, the coroner calls an
archaeologist, and if the remains are American Indian, the archaeologist
contacts House at the Colorado Commission of Indian Affairs.
The Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act provides a
process for museums and federal agencies to return certain cultural
items, including human remains and funerary and sacred objects, to
lineal descendants, culturally affiliated American Indian tribes and
Native Hawaiian organizations.
Federal agencies, and public and private museums � except the
Smithsonian Institution � that have received federal funds are
subject to NAGPRA. Colorado has a corollary law that applies to human
remains and associated funerary objects found on both private and public
property.
Congress passed NAGPRA because of a concern that cultural property
rights for American Indians were not adequately acknowledged by the
courts, or in practice by museums and federal agencies without specific
legislation, Sherry Hutt, program manager for NAGPRA, said in April
2005.
The NAGPRA repatriation process includes the following requirements:
Federal agencies and museums identify cultural items in their
collections that are subject to NAGPRA, and prepare summaries and
inventories of their items.
The agencies/museums must consult with lineal descendants, American
Indian tribes and Native Hawaiian organizations regarding the
identification and cultural affiliation of the NAGPRA items.
The agencies/museums must send notices to descendants, tribes and
Native Hawaiian organizations describing cultural items, lineal
descendance or cultural affiliation, and stating that the cultural items
may be repatriated.
The law requires the secretary of the U.S. Department of the Interior to
publish these notices in the Federal Register.