Univ. of Michigan and the Culturally Unidentifiable

Here is what the University of Michigan says--

U-M committee will advise about the transfer of culturally unidentifiable human remains

ANN ARBOR, Mich.—University of Michigan Vice President for Research Stephen Forrest has announced formation of a new advisory committee on culturally unidentifiable human remains (CUHR).

The group will advise Forrest on issues related to requests U-M receives from Native American tribes for the transfer of CUHR and funerary objects from the Museum of Anthropology. He made the announcement at the Board of Regents meeting in Flint today.

"I appreciate the willingness of these distinguished individuals, who represent a variety of academic backgrounds, to bring their broad experience and scholarly perspectives to this sensitive and complex issue," Forrest said.

The group is called the Advisory Committee on Culturally Unidentifiable Human Remains under NAGPRA. NAGPRA—the federal Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act—provides a mandatory process for returning culturally affiliated human remains and associated funerary objects to individuals and groups that have standing under the law and have requested such return.

rest at http://www.ns.umich.edu/htdocs/releases/story.php?id=7364

#################################

The response from the tribes in Michigan can be found at:

http://www.macpra.org/assets/Consensus_Statement.pdf


#################################

And newspaper coverage:

DETROIT - Facing criticism for still holding the remains of about 1,400 Native Americans in its archaeological collection, the University of Michigan will be reviewing its policies on how to properly deal with Indian bones and artifacts.

A committee charged with looking at the legal, ethical and scientific concerns involved will meet for the first time next week and "will hear all sides of the story," said Stephen Forrest, vice president for research at the Ann Arbor school.

"We want to have a very balanced approach," he said Friday. "We are actively seeking to understand all the aspects of the problem."

At issue is the conflicting interests of researchers and museums in studying and teaching about earlier human cultures and that of native peoples to have their religions and ancestral remains respected.

Under the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act passed by Congress in 1990, federally supported institutions must catalog the remains and burial items they hold and return them, when requested, to groups that have a "cultural affiliation" to them.

The issue in the Michigan case is remains which the school says have no clear affiliation to present-day tribes. Forrest said the law compels the school to retain such remains until the government issues clearer guidelines or it gets specific clearance from U.S. Interior Department.

Forrest said the goal of the committee -- 10 professors and one graduate student -- is to properly balance Indian rights and research goals while awaiting new federal guidelines.

rest at
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/chi-ap-mi-university-indian,0,4039354.story

##

We wish MACPRA well in its battle for justice!