Museum in New York state returns remains of 19 Native Americans to Oneida Indian Nation

 By Maysoon Khan THE ASSOCIATED PRESS ALBANY, N.Y. (AP)-A museum in Rochester, New York, returned ancestral remains of 19 Native Americans and funerary artifacts to the Oneida Indian Nation on Wednesday, striving for a “small step in the service of justice.” The remains of Oneida ancestors include those of five men, three women and two adolescent girls who lived sometime between 200 to 3,000 years ago. A mix of pottery and other items traditionally buried with the dead were also returned, as required by federal law. Hillary Olson, the president of the Rochester Museum and Science Center, apologized for the museum’s acquisition of the remains. “We have perpetuated harmful practices including the excavation, collection, study, and display of Native American ancestors and their belongings,” she said during a repatriation ceremony…

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