Archaeology in the Service of the Tribe: Three Episodes in Twenty-first-Century Tribal Archaeology in the US–Mexico Borderlands

Abstract

The 1987 publication "Uses of the Past: Archaeology in the Service of the State" offers the inspiration for considering the emerging role of descendent communities in archaeological research and cultural resource management in the American Southwest. Recognizing that interpretations of the past are seldom "value neutral", we explore the implications and benefits of interpretations of the past when they are "value tribal". Three episodes in twenty-first-century Tribal Archaeology in Arizona are considered including repatriation of religious objects under state statutes, international repatriation of human remains, and Tribal documentation of traditional cultural properties. We conclude that as federally recognized tribes initiate their own programs in archaeological investigation and assume greater responsibility in the cultural resource management process, new perspectives on the past are coming to light that are of potential benefit to everyone. La publicación en 1987 de "Los Usos del Pasado: La Arqueología en Servicio del Estado" nos inspira a considerar el rol emergente que cumplen los descendientes de comunidades indigenas en la investigación arqueológica y la gestión de recursos culturales en el Suroeste de los Estados Unidos. Tomando en cuenta que las interpretaciones del pasado raramente son neutrales ("Value neutral"), exploramos las implicaciones y beneficios que surgen cuando el pasado es interpretado con valores tribales ("value tribal"). Analizamos tres episodios del siglo 21 que transcurrieron en Arizona: la repatriación de objetos religiosos bajo un estatuto kiva, Vol. 81 Nos. 1-2, September, 2015, 62-79 Copyright © 2016 Arizona Archaeological and Historical Society.All rights reserved.DOI 10.1080/00231940.2015.1118738 a nivel de estado, la repatriación internacional de restos humanos, y la documentación tribal de propiedad cultural tradicional. Concluimos que a medida que tribus con reconocimiento federal inician programas de investigación arqueoló-gica y asumen mayor responsabilidad en el manejo de recursos culturales, también surgen nuevas perspectivas acerca del pasado que pueden traer beneficios mayores.

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