Lending Native Perspectives to NAGPRA at BLM Colorado

With a background in cultural anthropology and archaeology, Blythe Morrison joined Canyons of the Ancients National Monument (CANM) as a seasonal hire in 2021 before accepting a permanent Museum Specialist position in 2023. Originally from Washington state, Morrison is Amskapi Piikani, a citizen of the Blackfeet Nation. Education was what brought her to Colorado, but it’s the important work she’s currently doing that has led to her staying.

The Native American Graves and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA) was passed in 1990 to repatriate ancestors and funerary objects to tribes, however, in 2024 many museums are still piled high with boxes of artifacts, funerary objects, and remains. Morrison has taken on NAGPRA work at CANM, focusing on the research of objects in storage to piece together where they might be from, if they were meant to be seen again, and how these objects can be returned to where they belong.

“Capacity is a real issue,” she said. “Not everyone has the time or skills to do the work and it can be really overwhelming. I’m grateful to work with a small but dedicated curatorial team committed to respectful, justice-oriented practice.” NAGPRA regulations were updated this past January, requiring that museums and federal agencies update their inventories within the next five years. Many are hopeful that this action will make the process of repatriation smoother in the long run.

When it comes to the success of these projects, Morrison believes that it has to be personally important to those doing the work. “The key is really caring about the end result, in addition to open communication with the Tribes and Pueblos related to these ancestors and cultural items, and having the humility to ask questions about things you might not understand.” As an Indigenous woman, Morrison brings an essential perspective to NAGPRA work at CANM because she understands the emotional experience that these communities may experience during repatriation.

Though she isn’t working within her own culture, Morrison still feels the importance of what she’s doing. “Indigenizing collections management makes sense when you are caring for Indigenous cultural items that are still connected to modern communities. I can either complain about how these items have historically been handled, or I can push the story forward.” It’s Morrison’s belief that intentional care and emotional understanding are vital to ethical curation practices, NAGPRA and otherwise.

As an Indigenous woman myself, it’s Morrison’s final thoughts that have stuck with me most since our conversation: “Overall, I think it’s important for Indigenous folks to work in cultural or natural resources positions because we bring a different perspective that’s really valuable. I don’t think I truly understood the importance until I got into this work. It’s not for everyone, but for those who can, staying the course is worth the quality of change that you can make.”

Pualani Tupper is an Ancestral Lands Conservation Corps intern placed at the Bureau of Land Management Colorado State Office. As a Kanaka Maoli woman, she aims to educate public land users through indigenizing communications at the BLM

Pualani Tupper, Ancestral Lands Conservation Corps, Public Affairs Intern