Wednesday, October 26, 2022 – Ancestors’ remains in private hands

The Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act dictates remains from federal lands or in institutions receiving federal funds be returned to their tribal descendants. But what of remains from private lands or in museums that don’t take government funds? It was once common practice for archaeologists—both professional and amateur—to plunder burial sites. Some unscrupulous outlets still have ancestors’ remains on public display. Today on Native America Calling, Shawn Spruce gets a rundown of places that enjoy NAGPRA’s loopholes with Shannon Keller O’Loughlin (Choctaw), attorney and the executive director of the Association on American Indian Affairs; Kenny Bowekaty (Zuni), tour guide and archaeologist for the Pueblo of Zuni; and Bryon Schroeder, director of the Center for Big Bend Studies at Sul Russ State University.