Hundreds of thousands of human remains are housed in collections in institutions across the globe. The histories of these collections vary greatly, from individuals in historic anatomical collections to ancestral remains from archaeological sites. However, these collections were founded in colonial and imperial practices rooted in white supremacy. Acknowledging this history is vital to building a postcolonial bioanthropology. But identifying ethical action for collections with no known direct descendant ties is complicated. Human remains from South Asia exemplify the necessary intervention, but also why applying Western Judeo-Christian values or American essentialism extends historical paternalism and racism. I also emphasize the cultural variability in perceptions of human remains globally, contemporary ethical collection and studies, and the need for ethical and antiracist anthropological guidelines for a global world.
Sabrina C. Agarwal (Thu,) studied this question.