Aniak’s tribe sues state, feds over ancestral remains taken from airport site

An aerial position of Aniak’s airdrome (From Alaska DCRA)

Aniak’s tribal authorities is suing authorities and national agencies for allegedly taking quality remains from a funeral tract discovered beneath nan section airdrome – and not returning them.

The Aniak Traditional Council, nan federally-recognized people for nan Kuskokwim River community, says nan actions of nan national and authorities agencies are a usurpation of national law. Its suit, revenge successful U.S. District Court, claims they person barred nan people from practicing its taste and belief traditions, and person endangered different ancestral remains of Aniak’s people that could still beryllium astatine nan community’s airport.

The suit names 5 defendants: nan Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities and DOTPF Commissioner Ryan Anderson; nan Federal Aviation Administration and FAA Administrator Michael Whitaker; and nan University of Alaska system.

The Traditional Council is represented by Anchorage-based rule patient Fortier & Mikko, P.C.

The people wants nan excavated remains to beryllium returned. It besides seeks support to proceed exploring nan tract to retrieve and sphere different remains aliases taste artifacts.

According to nan complaint, revenge Tuesday, nan suit stems from a project to relocate Aniak’s airdrome runway to comply pinch national aviation standards.

In 2020, a contractor digging trenches for nan task recovered quality remains. Almost a twelvemonth later, nan Traditional Council brought successful an archaeologist to analyse nan site. The suit says nan archaeologist discovered that nan airdrome task trim a trench done a “previously intact prehistoric funeral site.”

The recovered remains and related artifacts were sent to nan University of Alaska for examination.

Since then, nan Traditional Council says that nan University of Alaska has kept nan remains. It besides claims that nan FAA has refused to assistance successful repatriating them, a usurpation of nan national Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act.

The Traditional Council besides claims that nan FAA and DOTPF person barred nan people from conducting further excavation. Aniak’s tribal authorities is concerned that airdrome attraction could further disturb nan site.

An FAA spokesperson said Wednesday that nan agency does not remark connected litigation.