Ancient One / Kennewick Man
Ancient One / Kennewick Man
The Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation is
pleased to hear today that the US Department of Interior has determined
the Ancient One (a.k.a. Kennewick Man) is culturally affiliated
with the five Tribes that have been seeking to rebury him for
over four years.
According to Armand Minthorn, CTUIR Board of Trustees member and
chair of the Tribe's Cultural Resources Commission, "It gives
me a tremendous feeling knowing that this Ancient One has been
reaffirmed as one of our ancestors. As tribal people who have
lived on the Columbia Plateau for thousands of years, we are eager
to rebury our ancestor and give him back to the earth."
"We knew in our heart that this one is an ancestor, but we
are saddened that it took the federal government so long to make
this determination. We want to remind America that the US Army
Corps of Engineers made this same cultural affiliation determination
four years ago, only to have that decision challenged by a small
group of scientists and their attack on the Native American Graves
Protection and Repatriation Act," said Minthorn.
"Since the responsibility for the Ancient One was handed
over to the US Department of Interior in 1998, the federal government
has spent over $1 million a year to simply reaffirm a determination
that one of its own agencies had already made. The plaintiff scientists
have forced the federal government to spend vast amounts of American
taxpayer money to defend a morally and legally sound decision
by the Corps of Engineers." said Jeff Van Pelt, manager of
the CTUIR's Cultural Resources Protection Program.
"We believe this determination reaffirms the letter and spirit
of NAGPRA and reinforces the fact that Tribes should have the
ability to protect their ancestors," said Van Pelt.
Minthorn added that he believes the five tribes are firmly committed
to continue pressing for a joint reburial of the Ancient One.
"While this is a great victory for the Ancient One today,
we will not rest until he is back in the ground again," he
said.
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