Tribe to get human remains from CMU

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Tribe to get human remains from CMU

October 21, 2010

http://themorningsun.com/articles/2010/10/21/news/srv0000009727760.txt

Central Michigan University has been working with the Saginaw Chippewa Indian Tribe to repatriate 144 Tribal ancestors who had been unearthed and donated to the university several years ago.

Frank Cloutier, public relations director for the Tribe, said that CMU has been very cooperative and has taken seriously the issue of dealing with unearthed Tribal ancestral remains and funerary objects.

"CMU is to be applauded for their efforts, and Willie Johnson and the staff of Ziibiwing must be commended on their diligence," said Cloutier. "CMU understands the cultural significance, and there is a mutual respect that is immeasurable.

"Hopefully, other universities will follow suit."

The Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act or NAGPRA is a federal law that passed in 1990 to provide "a process for museums and federal agencies to return Native American cultural items such as human remains, funerary objects, sacred objects and objects of cultural patrimony to lineal descendants, culturally affiliated Indian tribes and Native Hawaiian organizations, the NAGPRA website said.

A series of events will take place on campus during the first week of November which is also recognized by CMU as Native American Heritage month including a discussion of NAGPRA by renowned Native American activist, actor, and speaker, Dennis Banks.

On Wednesday, Nov. 3 at 5 p.m., Banks, of the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe people of northern Minn. and co-founder of the American Indian Movement, will speak about the act that he worked on in the mid-1970s.

"His presence is a testament of what this means," said Cloutier. "And CMU's position on this and our ability to work hand in hand with us is a very progressive step."

In September, Banks took part in a reburial ceremony on the Isabella Reservation when 10 ancestors of the Saginaw Chippewa Tribe were repatriated from the Peabody Museum on the campus of Harvard University.

On Thursday, Nov. 4, a community walk is scheduled to take place from campus to the Tribe's Nibokaan Ancestral Cemetery.

The walk will begin at 9 a.m. at the Special Olympics Michigan building and will include Tribal leaders, including Banks, and the community is welcomed.

"The Saginaw Chippewa Indian Tribe and Central Michigan University share a long and proud heritage of mutual respect," said Pam Gates, interim dean of the College of Humanities and Social and Behavioral Sciences in a press release. "In honor of the proud culture, heritage and history of the indigenous people of this region, CMU will rightfully return the remains of Saginaw Chippewa Tribal members in its possession to their families for proper burial.

"The tribe will officially inter the remains and their associated funerary objects during a noon ceremony Nov. 5 at the cemetery. At 6 p.m., a Spirit Feast will be held at the Ziibiwing Center to conclude the ancestral protocols."

All events are open to the public. Those who attend the Spirit Feast are asked to bring a dish to pass.