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LA's Fowler Museum returns items to Aboriginal group
The Fowler Museum at UCLA will return several artifacts to an Australian Aboriginal group.
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Courtesy David Esquivel
/
Fowler Museum
)
Topline:
The Fowler Museum at UCLA has returned cultural artifacts to Warumungu elders from Australia.
The background: The Fowler Museum began negotiating with the Aboriginal group for the return of 20 items. The museum director says Fowler has returned items to Indigenous groups over the past two decades.
Why now: There's a growing call by advocates to return cultural artifacts, especially those that are known to be looted. According to Fowler director Silvia Forni, the museum holds 130,000 objects, of which 27 have been returned. Many of those don't fall under the categories of "loot, stolen objects, or objects or particular cultural significance," that tribes most often want back.
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Why it matters: The return signals the changing role of museums as custodians with ethical responsibilities toward the items in their collections and the original owners. The move also reflects the demand that California's public universities repatriate Indigenous artifacts.
Listen: We interviewed Fowler director Silvia Forni about the returns.
Listen
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LA's Fowler Museum returns items to Aboriginal group
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But the game has changed: Congress voted to eliminate funding for public media across the country. Here at LAist that means a loss of $1.7 million in our budget every year. We want to assure you that despite growing threats to free press and free speech, LAist will remain a voice you know and trust. Speaking frankly, the amount of reader support we receive will help determine how strong of a newsroom we are going forward to cover the important news in our community.
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