Here is the synopsis of our sample research paper on The Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA) and the Controversy of the Kennewick Man
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Essay / Research Paper Abstract
This is a 7 page paper discussing NAGPRA and the controversy over the Kennewick Man. The Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA) was passed in 1990 which outlined the conditions for the repatriation of Native American remains and artifacts from archeological projects, museums and agencies. Since it was passed, a great deal of controversy has surrounded the act especially in the case of the Kennewick Man. The Kennewick Man was a 9,300 old skeleton found near the Columbia River in Washington in 1996. Following the guidelines of the act, the Department of the Interior wanted to hand over the remains to a nearby Native American tribe without scientific examination. Archaeologists brought the case to court using the argument that not only was the find critical to the development of the theories of migration in North America but also there was evidence that the Kennewick Man was not even of Indian origin. Overall, anthropologists and scientists believe that NAGPRA was made out of political considerations for the Native Americans but elevates the religious beliefs of Native Americans over those of other Americans, making it a violation of the First Amendment to the Constitution and disregarding the field of science.
Bibliography lists 5 sources.
Page Count:
7 pages (~225 words per page)
File: D0_TJNAGPR1.rtf
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Unformatted sample text from the term paper:
of Native American remains and artifacts from archeological projects, museums and agencies. Since it was passed, a great deal of controversy has surrounded the act especially in the case of
the Kennewick Man. The Kennewick Man was a 9,300 old skeleton found near the Columbia River in Washington in 1996. Following the guidelines of the act, the Department of the
Interior wanted to hand over the remains to a nearby Native American tribe without scientific examination. Archaeologists brought the case to court using the argument that not only was the
find critical to the development of the theories of migration in North America but also there was evidence that the Kennewick Man was not even of Indian origin. Overall, anthropologists
and scientists believe that NAGPRA was made out of political considerations for the Native Americans but elevates the religious beliefs of Native Americans over those of other Americans, making it
a violation of the First Amendment to the Constitution and disregarding the field of science. In 1990, the Native American Graves Protection and
Repatriation Act (NAGPRA) was passed which basically outlined the repatriation of Native American human remains and funerary objects from museum or federal agency collections and those which have been uncovered
from Indian lands (Clark, 1999). The act has caused a great deal of controversy in the field of archaeology and has in many ways changed the way archaeology and excavations
are conducted throughout the United States. A summary of the act presented by L.M. Sharamitaro (2001) shows that the act: clarifies the right of ownership of Indian, Alaska Native and
Native Hawaiian (Native American) human remains and artifacts which include all funerary, religious and objects of cultural patrimony which have been found on federal or tribal lands; outlines the conditions
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