Heinrich revives bill to curb cultural object trafficking
Sen. Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) (right) met yesterday with students from the Santa Fe Indian School Leadership Institute’s Summer Policy Academy in his office in Washington as he reintroduced legislation to prohibit the export of Native American cultural items. Heinrich/Flickr
Sen. Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) yesterday reintroduced legislation that aims to curb exports and illegal trafficking of Native American cultural objects, an issue Heinrich has led the way on during his first term in the upper chamber.
The "Safeguarding Tribal Objects of Patrimony Act," or "STOP Act," would specifically prohibit exporting cultural objects and human remains obtained in violation of the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act.
The bill would also increase criminal penalties under NAGPRA and direct the departments of the Interior, Homeland Security and State to appoint liaisons to aid tribes in the return of cultural property.
"We all recognize the incredible beauty of American Indian art — from the remnants of ancient wonders that we can explore and admire in places like Chaco Canyon and the Gila Cliff Dwellings to the traditional and modern art masterpieces created by Native artists to this day," Heinrich said in a statement.
"But we can also recognize a clear difference between supporting tribal artists or collecting artifacts ethically and legally as opposed to dealing or exporting items that tribes have identified as essential and sacred pieces of their cultural heritage," he added.
The issue came into the public eye last year when a sacred shield — stolen from the Acoma Pueblo reservation in the 1970s — was posted for sale at a French auction house (Greenwire, May 27, 2016).
The shield was eventually withdrawn from auction after pressure from Heinrich and then-Interior Secretary Sally Jewell, but it was never returned to the tribe.
Heinrich introduced a similar bill last year in the wake of the incident, but the legislation never made it out of committee (E&E Daily, July 7, 2016).
This year's version may also face an uphill path to the floor in a Senate schedule packed with big-ticket issues like health care and tax reform. But it has gained a bipartisan roster of co-sponsors, including Sens. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.), Tom Udall (D-N.M.), John McCain (R-Ariz.), Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii), Steve Daines (R-Mont.), Jon Tester (D-Mont.) and Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska).
The bill also has the support of tribal groups across the country that have long struggled to repatriate cultural items sent abroad by smugglers and auctioneers (Greenwire, Jan. 4).
Several tribes and the National Congress of American Indians have endorsed the bill, and the Acoma Pueblo worked with Heinrich's office to develop the legislation, Acoma Pueblo Gov. Kurt Riley said in a statement.
"Unfortunately, Acoma has firsthand experience with the illegal removal and trafficking of our cultural objects. It has been an uphill battle to secure their return," Riley said, adding, "However, we continue to fight for their return as their loss threatens the ability of our children to continue our cultural practices and thus threatens our identity as a people."
