The 2019 5th ANNUAL REPATRIATION CONFERENCE
This beautiful painting was created for the 5th Annual Repatriation Conference by Gordon Lewis, a citizen of the Fort McDowell Yavapai Nation. Through the Creator’s gift of art, Gordon shares his cultural heritage for the purpose of preserving the roots of his Ancestors.
Healing the Divide. The 2019 Association on American Indian Affairs’ Fifth Annual Repatriation Conference – Healing the Divide – fostered a space of healing, sharing and learning open to all. For centuries, Indigenous Peoples have endured forced and violent assimilation, theft of religious and cultural practices, mockery and misappropriation of their cultural identities, and the continued display and sale of their most sacred cultural patrimony needed for ongoing health. These policies and attitudes have resulted in the loss of culture, religion, language and other ancestral knowledge bases, culminating in the historic trauma that all of Indian Country experiences today. Together, as a community of Tribal leaders, Tribal cultural resource practitioners, federal and state agents, foreign and domestic museums and institutions, academics, artists, dealers, collectors, and youth, we can heal the divide, illuminate answers and develop respectful consultation practices.
Without culture, we cannot exist as distinct and sovereign peoples. Nor can we heal from the wounds from a history of dispossession and violence. The mission of the Association is to fight to strengthen Native American Cultural Sovereignty. The Association has been a leader in protecting Cultural Sovereignty – the things that make us who we are – through its Repatriation, International Repatriation and Protection of Sacred Sites initiatives, as well as ensuring that culture is passed on through its Youth initiatives. The Association has advocated for the protection and repatriation of cultural items and sacred lands for almost 100 years, including the development of the National Museum of the American Indian Act, the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act, and the Safeguarding Tribal Objects of Patrimony Act and other new legislation that will support the return and protection of our Cultural Heritage. The Association also provides training and technical assistance to Tribes and others, and is involved with repatriation of private collections both domestically and internationally from institutions, individuals and auctions. |
Thank you to our SPONSORS committed to
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