SACRAMENTO, Calif. (KERO) — Frustration and pain were on display during a legislative hearing where tribal leaders joined lawmakers to ask 'what's the hold up' as the California State University system has failed to repatriate nearly 700,000 Native American human remains and artifacts.
An auditor uncovered multiple campuses have failed to comply with the federal and state Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act. These laws lay out how to handle human remains and artifacts with dignity and respect and violations of these acts can be both criminal and civil.
In Sacramento State's case, it's ranked as having the third largest collection - more than 115,000 human remains and artifacts with only five percent repatriated.
Chairman Jack Potter of the Redding Rancheria Tribe says it's not only about returning what rightfully belongs to California's first people.
"It's nation. We're going through a nation rebuilding but if we can't get our ancestor back, we're not going to be a whole nation."
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