The University of North Dakota has unearthed dozens of indigenous artifacts and human bones.
The remains were illegally held, in violation of a law requiring the return of Native bodies and artifacts to their rightful owners.
An official stated that the bones were stored in a manner that “totally disregarded the fact that they were once human beings.”
Something is being loaded.
When an English professor at the University of North Dakota searched for Indigenous artifacts, she discovered their bodies stored in the “most cruel way possible.”
CNN said that roughly 250 boxes were discovered in March, but the discovery was not made public until this week at the request of Indigenous representatives.
Laine Lyons, who works for the UND Alumni Association and Foundation, said NBC News, “the best way I can characterize how we discovered things is in the most brutal way possible.” “Totally disregarded the fact that these were once humans.”
According to Lyons, a member of the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians, more than 70 body remains were discovered. According to the outlet, headdresses, war bonnets, and a ceremonial pipe were also discovered.
According to UND, Henry Montgomery, author of “Remains of Prehistoric Man in the Dakotas,” was the first faculty member to bring Native relics to the university. He obtained the remains and artifacts through excavations.
“Subsequent anthropological and archaeological excavations in the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s brought the bones of other ancestors to UND. In 2007, one object was donated to the University “according to the webpage for repatriation at the university.
It is unknown whether the goods were newly discovered.
The institution is currently working with a number of tribal leaders to return the items to their proper place, according to a press release.
“Coming on the heels of other recent revelations about historical wrongs perpetrated against Indigenous people in the United States and Canada, members of our tribal communities in the region will undoubtedly be profoundly affected by this news from UND,” university president Andrew Armacost said in a statement.
The discovery also breaches a 1990 federal statute, the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act, which mandates the return of Native American bones and artifacts to their respective tribe.
Chairman of the Mandan, Hidatsa, and Arikara Nation Mark Fox told NBC News, “It is always tremendously upsetting and hurtful when our ancestors’ remains have been disturbed and lost.” “We will closely follow this situation to guarantee that the remains of our ancestors are repatriated as promptly and respectfully as feasible under the circumstances.”
UND is not the first institution to discover Native American skeletal remains on its campus. Harvard recently admitted to illegally possessing the remains of around 7,000 Indigenous people, while the University of Tennessee has begun the reunion process for more than 2,000 remains.
North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum said in a statement released on Wednesday, “We are heartbroken by the highly disrespectful treatment of these indigenous ancestral remains and artifacts and express our deepest apologies to the sovereign tribal nations in North Dakota and abroad.”
He stated, “This dark chapter, while exceedingly painful, also gives an opportunity to increase our understanding and respect for indigenous cultures and to serve as a model for the nation by conducting this process with the utmost respect for the aspirations, customs, and traditions of tribal groups.”
The University of North Dakota declined more comment.