Entry to the Rochester Museum & Science Center is now free for members of Indigenous tribes and nations.
It coincides with a new permanent exhibit called Haudenosaunee Continuity, Innovation, Resilience. That showcases past and present Haudenosaunee artistry and culture.
The museum has an extensive collection of ancestral objects. And curator Jamie Jacobs of the Seneca Turtle Clan said the more he learned about it, he came to believe that his ancestors intended it to be that way.
"They sacrificed themselves twice, once in life and then once in the afterlife,” Jacobs said. “I believe that they saw a time coming when the younger generation would want to know about them. So they gave permission to the universe for them to be excavated and come here, so that we could find them here and put those pieces back together again.”
At the museum, officials are rethinking and the obligation to the artifacts that have been part of the collection, said Kathryn Murano Santos, senior director of collections and exhibitions. It’s an opportunity to repair harm caused by historical museum practices.
“We're really excited for the organizational change that it's brought ... both in terms of a new exhibition and an amazing offering,” Murano Santos said. “But also, internally in terms of the changing ways that now we're engaging with various artists and Haudenosaunee communities to be able to celebrate this work.”
That transformation has been years in the making.
Under the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act of 1990, the museum has made more than 1,700 Native American people’s remains, sacred objects, and artifacts that had been in its collection available for repatriation. In 2023, the ancestral remains of 19 people were repatriated to the Oneida Indian Nation.
Those efforts are ongoing. Starting this week, the remains of seven people and related funerary objects are available for repatriation to several tribes in what is now Northern California, according to a notice of inventory that was filed with the Federal Register in October.
“RMSC’s historical practices have harmed Indigenous communities. Through the excavation, collection, study, and display of Native American ancestors and their belongings, we have played a role in denying Native rights to dignity and self-determination,” a museum statement read. “The RMSC recognizes and apologizes for the trauma we have caused and is committed to the creation of a more just future.”
The museum will fly the Haudenosaunee Confederacy flag on its campus and seek Indigenous representation on its board by next June, according to the statement.
Members of federally and state-recognized tribes and nations will need to present a tribal ID or Indian Status Card for free admission to the Museum & Science Center, Cumming Nature Center, and Star Shows at the Strasenburgh Planetarium. The new policy is expected to remain in place indefinitely.
Disclosure: Rochester Museum & Science Center is among WXXI’s supporters. WXXI News covers RMSC independently as we cover everything else.
