Dear USET/USET SPF Family,
A USET SPF Member Tribal Nation recently brought the following issue to our attention and we are sharing for broader Member awareness and/or action:
Marburg Auctions in York, PA is holding an auction of hundreds of Native American cultural items this Saturday, October 9th. Among the items being offered for sale are, "over 360 lots of Northeastern material including a large selection from Pennsylvania and New England." The auction also contains cultural items from New York and California, as well as the Central and Midwestern U.S.
Our cultural items are essential to the survival and understanding of our heritage, as they provide a vital link to our history, our ceremonies, and our way of life. For too long, USET SPF Tribal Nations, and Tribal Nations across the country, have faced the ongoing theft and commercial sale of these items. As we seek to return them to their rightful places on our homelands with our people, our federal partners have a legal and moral obligation to assist.
USET SPF Member Tribal Nations wishing to engage the Bureau of Indian Affairs' (BIA) Cultural Resources Unit should contact Special Agent Frank Chavez at Franklin.Chavez@bia.gov or BIA Eastern Region Director, Kimberly Bouchard, at kimberly.bouchard@bia.gov.
For more information, please contact Liz, USET SPF Director of Policy and Legislative Affairs, at lmalerba@usetinc.org.
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