NO, Kennewick Man should be kept for scientific study!
From the perspective of scientists that want to further study
Kennewick Man
The discovery of Kennewick Man was very exciting for scientists
that study human history. His skeleton holds a lot of clues about how
humans settled the earth thousands of years ago. As scientists, we
respect the Native American’s rights to rebury any ancestors of theirs
that have been uncovered by scientists in the past.
However, in the case of Kennewick Man, things about his skeleton
suggest that he may not be an ancestor of modern-day Native Americans.
This could be possible considering the theory that multiple waves of
people came over to America from Asia by way of a land bridge and
boats. It can’t be proven whether or not Kennewick Man is an ancestor
of Native Americans without further scientific study. DNA analysis
would need to be done, but Kennewick Mans skeleton has been locked
away at the Burke Museum on the University of Washington campus in
Seattle, Washington.
If the tribes get their way, no scientific study will be done, and we
will never know the secrets that are hidden in Kennewick Man’s skeleton.
If we were allowed to study Kennewick Man further, we could possibly
learn more about what ancient humans ate, what their life was like, the
arrowhead in Kennewick Man’s hip and how it might have gotten there,
and so much more.
Our scientific process has been progressing very quickly. There is
no telling how much more advanced our techniques may be in ten years
and how much more we could learn if we were allowed to keep
Kennewick Man for scientific research.
We don’t think the Native Americans have a true claim to
Kennewick Man’s bones until they are proven to be an ancestor of theirs.
The tests to do this only take a tiny piece of the skeleton, so it is not very
destructive to the skeleton.
We hope the Native Americans are willing to see our point of view,
and realize that they may not know everything about the past from their
oral histories. Scientific tests have the ability to tell us so much more
about Kennewick Man and the history of people coming to North and
South America. If Kennewick Man really is a genetic ancestor of their
tribe, we would return his bones to be reburied. If not, we think we
should have the right to keep studying his skeleton.