NAGPRA

NAGPRA is an acronym for Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act. As stated on the NAGPRA website, NAGPRA is a federal law that regulates the “protection and return of Native American human remains, funerary objects, sacred objects, and objects of cultural patrimony.”

Because Boston Children’s Museum’s Collection contains Indigenous (or Native American) belongings, we are subject to all NAGPRA regulations.

Boston Children’s Museum acknowledges that our Collection contains and has contained belongings from Indigenous peoples from across North America (and other regions of the world not covered by NAGPRA legislation), which were taken from the resting places of Native Ancestors as well as taken from the living. These belongings are inappropriate for our museum to hold and have been displayed without context or understanding in the past.

Boston Children’s Museum is working to return these materials. Still, we take seriously the responsibility to treat these materials with respect and protect them for as long as they remain in our care.

To see all past and current Boston Children’s Museum repatriation initiatives, please visit the Federal Register and search for “Boston Children’s Museum”.

https://www.federalregister.gov/

Boston Children’s Museum invites any Indigenous groups or Tribal Historic Preservation Officers interested in learning more about the Indigenous belongings in our Collection to contact us: [email protected]