Changes

'''Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act''' (NAGPRA) is a [[Congress]]ional Act signed into law in 1990.  The law is an attempt to provide a way for native people to accomplish several things including: 1) protection of [[holy]] sites and religious burials from development and construction activities 2) the return to proper [[tribe]]s of Native American bones and artifacts stolen from them over the last 500 years, including property held by [[museums]] and [[universities]], and 3) providing more independent oversight of construction or land development sites on Indian Territory.

'''Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act''' (NAGPRA) is a [[Congress]]ional Act signed into law in 1990.  The law is an attempt to provide a way for native people to accomplish several things including:  

#protection of [[holy]] sites and religious burials from development and construction activities  

#the return to proper [[tribe]]s of Native American bones and artifacts stolen from them over the last 500 years, including property held by [[museums]] and [[universities]], and  

#providing more independent oversight of construction or land development sites on Indian Territory.

==Criticisms==

==Criticisms==

While in general this bill has been long overdue, and is a building block of better relations with Indian people and the US Government, it has some de-facto problems.   

While in general this bill has been long overdue, and is a building block of better relations with Indian people and the US Government, it has some de facto problems.   

#At what point are ancient bones of "anthropological" interest in general, and at what point are they truly bones of a given tribe?  500 year old bones?  1000 year old bones?<ref>See Kennewick Man controversy and the small role NAGPRA played in the situation</ref>  10,000 year old bones?  If a bone were found in the US, to be 1,500,000 years old, and show evidence of Alien presence, is that still a "Native American" bone? <ref>Though this example is extreme, the fact is that the law itself makes no clear distinction between bones that would clearly be the legacy of a particular tribe, and those old enough to simply be something more generally "human interest".</ref>

#At what point are ancient bones of "anthropological" interest in general, and at what point are they truly bones of a given tribe?  500 year old bones?  1000 year old bones?<ref>See Kennewick Man controversy and the small role NAGPRA played in the situation</ref>  10,000 year old bones?  If a bone were found in the US, to be 1,500,000 years old, and show evidence of Alien presence, is that still a "Native American" bone? <ref>Though this example is extreme, the fact is that the law itself makes no clear distinction between bones that would clearly be the legacy of a particular tribe, and those old enough to simply be something more generally "human interest".</ref>

#Which tribe gets to say if a location can be disturbed, or of the location under construction is a religious site?

#Which tribe gets to say if a location can be disturbed, or of the location under construction is a religious site?