Does your public library possess a collection that includes Native American cultural items? When the news has frequent, sensational articles revealing how institutions have inappropriately handled Native American cultural items, unprepared and untrained public librarians and library boards who possess these collections with items like this are worried and unsure of what to do. This session will provide an overview of the federal Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA) and give specific guidance on who needs to comply, how compliance can be addressed, and why this is important.
The audience will hear from Library Director Abby Armour about how the Mukwonago Community Library in Mukwonago, Wisconsin, learned that they were in control of a collection containing over 12400, Native American cultural items and how they made the necessary steps to ensure compliance with NAGPRA. From figuring out the history of the collection since being given to the library in 1965 to procuring the correct insurance to working with the local historical society to establish legal documentation for a permanent loan, Abby will share how she and the Library Board navigated this without any prior training or knowledge and turned it into an opportunity to build relationships with the local village, historical society, and Native American Tribes.
The audience will also hear from Claire Wilbert, an Associate at Bernstein & Associates NAGPRA Consultants, whom the Library hired to help them come into compliance with NAGPRA. Bernstein & Associates have been providing services in support of repatriation to Indian Tribes, Native Hawaiian organizations, lineal descendants, museums, universities, colleges, municipalities, state governments, and federal agencies since the 1980s. Claire will explain the law, how and why it applies to public libraries, how institutions can comply with NAGPRA, and how compliance is an opportunity for institutions to build respectful and fulfilling relationships with Native American Tribes.
Learning Objectives:
...articulate what NAGPRA is and why an institution needs to comply with this federal law.
...explain the responsibilities of an institution that controls Native American cultural items under NAGPRA.
...describe the various legal and practical realities of controling and loaning a collection that contains items covered under NAGPRA.